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Steiner v. Wisconsin American Mutual Insurance Co.6/9/2005
REVIEW of a decision of the Court of Appeals. Reversed and remanded.
This is a review of a published decision of the court of appeals affirming a judgment of the Circuit Court for Adams County, Duane H. Polivka, Judge. The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of Wisconsin American Mutual Insurance Company (WAMIC), Steiner Corporation's insurer, against Patricia Steiner and her husband John Steiner, the plaintiffs, concluding that the Corporation (the land contract vendee) did not own the property in question as of October 7, 1999, and therefore was not liable for the plaintiffs' injuries sustained on the property on October 15, 1999.
The court of appeals affirmed the judgment of the circuit court, concluding that the period for redemption for the judgment of strict foreclosure of a land contract against the Corporation (the land contract vendee) ended on October 7, 1999, and that under Wis. Stat. § 846.30 (2001-02), equitable title reverts to the land contract vendor at the expiration of the redemption period if the land contract vendee fails to make full payment, that is, fails to redeem. According to the court of appeals, the Corporation ceased to own the property as of October 7, 1999. Therefore, the corporation was not liable for any personal injuries occurring on the property after October 7, 1999.
The issue presented in this case is when, under Wis. Stat. § 846.30, does equitable title to the property in a land contract revert from a land contract vendee to the land contract vendor. That is, does equitable title remain with a land contract vendee until a circuit court, following expiration of the redemption period for strict foreclosure, enters an order confirming the land contract vendee's default? Or does equitable title to the property automatically revert to the land contract vendor at the expiration of the redemption period for strict foreclosure without a circuit court entering an order?
We hold that under Wis. Stat. § 846.30 equitable title remains with a land contract vendee until a circuit court enters a final order, following the redemption period for strict foreclosure, confirming the land contract vendee's nonredemption. As a result, in the present case equitable title did not pass from the Steiner Corporation (the land contract vendee) to the land contract vendors until December 1, 1999, when an order confirming the nonredemption was entered. Accordingly, the Corporation had equitable title to the property under the land contract on October 15, 1999, the date of the plaintiffs' personal injuries, and the Corporation and WAMIC, its insurer, may be subject to liability for plaintiffs' injuries.
Accordingly, we reverse the decision of the court of appeals and remand the cause to the circuit court for further proceedings consistent with this decision.
We discuss the issue presented, exploring its various aspects, in the following order: I. The standard of appellate review. II. The facts. III. The law of foreclosure of land contracts. IV. The interpretation of Wis. Stat. § 846.30. V. The application of Wis. Stat. § 846.30 to the facts. VI. The liability of Steiner Corporation for the acts of Robert Steiner.
I.
In reviewing a grant of summary judgment, an appellate court applies the standards governing summary judgment set forth in Wis. Stat. § 802.08(2) in the same manner as the circuit court. Summary judgment is appropriate when there are no issues of material fact, but only questions of law upon which the moving party is entitled to judgment. In reviewing whether there are genuine issues of material fact, a reviewing court will draw all reasonable inferences in favor o
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