pjc-oil-and-gas-2022-lib

PJC 312.21

D EFENSES

PJC 312.21 Question and Instruction on Bona Fide Purchaser Defense QUESTION ______ Is Don Davis a bona fide purchaser of the real property? A “bona fide purchaser” is one who purchases real property in good faith for valuable consideration without notice of a third-party claim to the property. [Insert additional instructions regarding notice, if appropriate.] Answer “Yes” or “No.” Answer: _______________ COMMENT When to use. PJC 312.21 is appropriate to use when the defendant asserts the defense of bona fide purchaser. Source of question and instruction. PJC 312.21 is derived from Madison v. Gor don , 39 S.W.3d 604, 606 (Tex. 2001) (per curiam); Westland Oil Development Corp. v. Gulf Oil Corp. , 637 S.W.2d 903, 908 (Tex. 1982); NRG Exploration, Inc. v. Rauch , 671 S.W.2d 649, 653 (Tex. App.—Austin 1984, writ ref’d n.r.e.); Pierson v. McClin tock , 78 S.W. 706, 707–08 (Tex. App.—Galveston 1904, no writ); and Tex. Prop. Code § 13.001. Notice. Notice of a third party’s claim may be actual or constructive: “Actual notice” literally means express or positive personal information or knowledge directly communicated to the person to be affected. In a more comprehensive sense, the term also embraces knowledge of all those facts which reasonable inquiry would have disclosed, the duty of inquiry extend ing only to matters that are fairly suggested by the facts really known. In other words, whatever fairly puts a person upon inquiry is actual notice of the facts which would have been discovered by reasonable use of the means at hand. Flack v. First National Bank , 226 S.W.2d 628, 631–32 (Tex. 1950). See also Nguyen v. Chapa , 305 S.W.3d 316, 323 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2009, pet. denied) (cit ing Madison , 39 S.W.3d at 606). Generally, the question of whether a party has notice is a question of fact; it becomes a question of law only when there is no room for ordi nary minds to differ about the proper conclusion to be drawn from the evidence.

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