Kenneth L. Musgrave and Etta D. Musgrave - Page 8




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            contract signing or when he takes occupation.  The Supreme Court                           
            of Texas adopted the judgment in Leeson.  Relying on these cases,                          
            petitioners argue:                                                                         
                  Petitioners’ gift to the Church was completed in 1994                                
                  when Petitioners and the Church executed the Contract                                
                  [for deed].  Such act gave the Church unrestricted                                   
                  possession of the Property and equitable title to the                                
                  Property.  At such time, the Church had the risk of                                  
                  loss from destruction of improvements upon the Property                              
                  or decrease in the Property's value.  The Church also                                
                  had the benefit of any increase in value of the                                      
                  Property.  In fact, the Church had all obligations and                               
                  benefits of ownership of the Property.                                               
                  In order to determine the rights given to a purchaser under                          
            Texas law it is necessary to examine the precedential value of                             
            both lines of cases.  Both Johnson v. Wood, supra, and Leeson                              
            were decided by the Texas Commission of Appeals, an adjudicative                           
            body formed to alleviate the workload of the higher courts of                              
            Texas.  See Club Corp. of Am. v. Concerned Property Owners, supra                          
            at 625-626 (citing Texas Law Review Association, Texas Rules of                            
            Form, ch. 5, at 14-17 (8th ed. 1995)).  The precedential value of                          
            a case decided by the commission depends on whether the opinion                            
            was adopted, the holding was approved, or the judgment was                                 
            adopted by the Supreme Court of Texas.  See id. at 626.   If the                           
            Supreme Court adopts the commission's opinion, then it is treated                          
            as a precedent having the full authority of a Supreme Court of                             
            Texas decision.  See id.  If the Supreme Court merely approves                             
            the holding or adopts only the judgment, then the precedential                             
            value of the commission's opinion is limited.  See id.                                     





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