Rankin v. Naftalis

POPE, Justice.

Dr. J. M. Naftalis, Dr. R. D. Martin, Gene S. Friedman, and E. F. Lisle filed suit against Robert E. Rankin seeking to impress a constructive trust upon an oil and gas lease that he took in his name. The defendant, Rankin, pleaded in defense, that plaintiffs’ claim was barred by the Statute of Frauds, the Statute of Conveyances, and the Texas Trust Act. Rankin also defended on the grounds that plaintiffs were es-topped to assert their claim in equity. After a jury trial, the court rendered judgment that the plaintiffs take nothing, but the court of civil appeals with one justice…