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Steiner v. Wisconsin American Mutual Insurance Co.6/9/2005
lished under St. Joseph's Hospital . . . , which states at page 430: "A judgment of strict foreclosure of a land contract does not produce absolute finality. In such judgments, a subsequent order barring the defendant's interest and claims for want of redemption is essential in order to declare and quiet title in the plaintiff . . . ."
We should take this opportunity to propose that AB 579 be amended to include a requirement for a final order. This can be done very simply by adding the following language as part of proposed Section 846.30, Wisconsin Statutes, or as a new section:
No judgment of strict foreclosure shall be final until the entry of an order, after the expiration of the redemption period, confirming that no redemption has been made and making the judgment of strict foreclosure absolute (emphasis added).
Representative Marty Reynolds requested that the Legislative Reference Bureau draft legislation based on the problems discussed in the Chicago Title Insurance Company letter.
The suggested change makes sense from the perspective of a title insurance company. A title insurance company would be interested in pinpointing, to the extent possible, the date on which a land contract vendee's equitable title passes to the vendor. A circuit court order creates certainty, finality, and clarity for passage of title, easing the task of examining real property records to determine and insure ownership. A title insurance company's interest in clarity and finality of the rights and interests of the parties to the land contract is especially strong because, as we discussed above, the case law is confusing concerning rights and interests in the event of strict foreclosure and failure to redeem. In light of the Exchange Corp. and St. Joseph Hospital cases, clarification of when a land contract vendee's equitable interest reverts to the vendor should be welcome.
On the basis of the text of Wis. Stat. § 846.30, the case law, Wisconsin practice, and legislative history, we are persuaded that § 846.30 requires that in strict foreclosure a circuit court must issue a final order to confirm a land contract vendee's failure to redeem prior to the expiration of the redemption period, and that only upon entry of the final order does a land contract vendee's equitable title revert to the land contract vendor.
The court of appeals reached a different interpretation of Wis. Stat. § 846.30 based on three additional considerations, none of which we consider persuasive enough to convince us that our interpretation of Wis. Stat. § 846.30 is misplaced.
First, the court of appeals held that the plaintiffs' interpretation of Wis. Stat. § 846.30 that equitable title reverts to the vendor only upon the final order would create an illogical result. According to the court of appeals, an indefinite period of time may elapse between the end of the redemption period and the order transferring title, during which the land contract vendee remains the equitable owner with all the rights and responsibilities thereof. This result is not illogical. This situation is similar to a foreclosure on a mortgage when there is a period between the end of the redemption period and a sheriff's sale; the mortgagor holds title.
Second and related to the first point, the court of appeals concluded that "the date on which the confirming order is entered would not be tied, either by statute or by practical realities, to the actual situations of the vendor and vendee." The transfer of equitable title should depend, according to the court of appeals, on what is happening between the parties, not on when an order is presented to the court and when a court m
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