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Steiner v. Wisconsin American Mutual Insurance Co.6/9/2005
ption had expired. Id. at 424. Thus, St. Joseph's Hospital could be read as simply providing that in an action for strict foreclosure, a court retains the equitable power to extend the period of redemption before a final order is issued, assuming the redemption period has not yet run.
Whatever confusion existed as to the scope of the holding in St. Joseph's Hospital was put to rest in Exchange Corporation, which explained and clarified the meaning of the above passage from St. Joseph's Hospital. In Exchange Corporation, 56 Wis. 2d at 562, when discussing strict foreclosure judgments, this court held:
A strict foreclosure judgment is of such a nature that the court must be considered as having the power to control the judgment even beyond a term of court to the extent the period of redemption may be extended on equitable grounds if an application for extension is made prior to the expiration of the period; the judgment did not reserve this power for it becomes final or absolute only upon the expiration of the period of redemption. Such a judgment may be considered as an interlocutory judgment which automatically becomes final upon the expiration of the period of redemption without any further motion or decree making it absolute. If the record is to reflect the fact the vendee did not redeem, an order may be entered finding the vendee did not meet the conditions; sometimes an affidavit of such fact is filed. But if the order is used, it would normally not confirm the title but merely reaffirm the legal title in the vendor. It is possible for a court to reserve power to extend the period of redemption even after the original period of redemption has expired, in which case it would have power to extend time even without the vendee's application prior to expiration of the original period. If the court does reserve this power, a subsequent order would seem necessary to finally terminate any possible rights in the vendee; but this would be an unusual case.
Id. at 561-62 (emphasis added). In so holding the court expressly stated: "Broader dicta in the St. Joseph's Hospital Case to the effect the court of equity has inherent jurisdiction after the expiration of the period of redemption without reserving such power is disapproved." Id. at 562 (emphasis added). Thus, Exchange Corporation explained that a narrow reading of St. Joseph's Hospital was correct and it disapproved any dicta suggesting a broader holding that title in a land contract passes only upon the circuit court entering a final order indicating that title has passed.
The following rules governing the passage of title on land contracts in strict foreclosure actions are apparent from Exchange Corporation. First, "the period of redemption may be extended on equitable grounds if an application for extension is made prior to the expiration of the period[.]" Id. at 561. Second, the period of redemption may be extended after the original redemption period has expired only if the court expressly "reserve power to extend the period of redemption even after the original period of redemption has expired." Id. at 561-62. Third, if the original judgment of strict foreclosure did not expressly reserve the power to extend the redemption period after the redemption period had expired and no application was made to extend the period of redemption before it expired, the judgment "automatically becomes final upon the expiration of the period of redemption without any further motion or decree making it absolute." Id. at 561. In this third scenario, although "an order may be entered finding the vendee did not meet the conditions[,] . . . [the order] would normally not confirm the title but merely reaffirm the legal title in the vendo
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