Christy

This is an appeal by Oakland Title Insurance and Guaranty Company from an adverse judgment against it in an action brought by certain purchasers of interest or units in a common law or Massachusetts trust of which appellant was trustee. The basic facts giving rise to the litigation were substantially as follows:

On and prior to February 16, 1926, one V. 0. Lawrence was the owner of a parcel of real property in the city of Oakland improved with a building used and rented for stores, and upon which there was an encumbrance in the form of a deed of trust to secure the payment of $25,000 due January 5, 1927. Lawrence desired to create a trust upon this property for the purpose of dividing the ownership thereof into one hundred units or interests each representing the beneficial ownership of a one-hundredth part of such property. To carry out this purpose on February 16, 1926, Lawrence conveyed the real property to appellant and concurrently with such conveyance appellant and Lawrence entered into a trust agreement by which appellant agreed to hold the title to the property in trust for the purposes in such agreement recited. Since this trust agreement was afterwards superseded by a…