Aaron v. Landcraft, Inc.

900 So. 2d 920, 4 La.App. 5 Cir. 1319, 2005 La. App. LEXIS 616, 2005 WL 599712
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 15, 2005
DocketNo. 04-CA-1319
StatusPublished

This text of 900 So. 2d 920 (Aaron v. Landcraft, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Aaron v. Landcraft, Inc., 900 So. 2d 920, 4 La.App. 5 Cir. 1319, 2005 La. App. LEXIS 616, 2005 WL 599712 (La. Ct. App. 2005).

Opinion

J^SOL GOTHARD, Judge.

This is an appeal taken by plaintiffs, Jermaine Aaron, et al., from a judgment sustaining various exceptions, including no cause of action, to their “Petition for Damages, Temporary Restraining Order and Injunctive Relief.”

Plaintiffs are all property owners in the Palmetto Lakes subdivision in Laplace. They filed this action naming the developer of the subdivision, Landcraft, Inc. (Landcraft), its representative, Joseph Scontrino, and its insurer as defendants. According to the petition, Landcraft, through its agent Mr. Scontrino, represented to plaintiffs that the subdivision would be a closed one with no through streets with a functional community pond and green areas. Plaintiffs allege that after they purchased property based on these representations, Landcraft extended a street in the subdivision to adjacent ones under construction on either side of Palmetto Lakes. As to the pond, plaintiffs allege it'was constructed by Landcraft, but is | .¡defective, causing an environmental hazard. Further, it is not open to the whole community, but is only available to lots bordering the pond.

Plaintiffs combined a cause of action for damages to their homes during the construction of the through street, as well as reduction of their property values with a request for injunctive relief to stop Land-craft from extending the through street into a neighboring subdivision, and from using any of the subdivision streets for commercial truck traffic. In subsequent pleadings, two plaintiffs were added and two others were dismissed.

[922]*922Defendants filed exceptions of vagueness, improper cumulation of actions, improperly joined and accumulated parties, prematurity and no cause of action to plaintiffs’ action for damages. Defendants also filed exceptions of no cause of action and no right of action to the petition for injunctive relief. All requests for injunc-tive relief, and related exceptions and request for sanctions were subsequently dismissed by the parties and are no longer at issue.

On November 10, 2003, the trial court rendered judgment maintaining the exeép-tions to the main demands and granting plaintiffs thirty days to amend the petition, “after which failure to properly amend the Petition to cure all defects and deficiencies may result in the dismissal of all claims, without prejudice, against defendants within the discretion of the Court.” The judgment also maintained the exception of no cause of action as it related to Mr. Scontri-no and dismissed the action as to that defendant.

Subsequently, plaintiffs filed a supplemental and amending petition that listed each plaintiff, their address, and the date they entered into a contract for the sale of a home in the subdivision. The petition was further amended to state that certain aspects of the agreements, such as the construction of a community pond and a private, closed subdivision were verbal additions to the written contracts of Usale. Plaintiffs maintain that the failure of defendants to act in good faith to fulfill the promises made in the oral contract is a breach of a specific duty set forth in La. C.C. Art. 1759. In the alternative, plaintiffs assert causes of action in detrimental reliance, unjust enrichment, negligent misrepresentations under La. C.C. Art. 2315, and the creation of a hazardous condition by negligent construction of the pond.

The defendants re-filed the same exceptions to the supplemental and amending petition. After a second hearing on the exceptions, the trial court rendered the judgment on appeal before us. In that judgment, the trial court granted the exceptions of vagueness, improper cumulation of actions and ho cause of action. The trial court denied the exception of prematurity.

Improper cumulation

La. C.C.P. Art. 462 provides that:

A plaintiff may cumulate against the same defendant two or more actions even though based on different grounds, if:
(1) Each of the actions cumulated is within the jurisdiction of the court and is brought in the proper venue; and
(2) All of the actions cumulated are mutually consistent and employ the same form of procedure.
Except as otherwise provided in Article 3657, inconsistent or mutually exclusive actions may be cumulated in the same judicial demand if pleaded in the alternative.

La. C.C.P. Art. 463 provides that:

Two or more parties may be joined in the same suit, either as plaintiffs or as defendants, if:
(1) There is a community of interest between the parties joined;
(2) Each of the actions cumulated is within the jurisdiction of the court and is brought in the proper venue; and
(3) All of the actions cumulated are mutually consistent and employ the same form of procedure.
^Except as otherwise provided in Article 3657, inconsistent or mutually exclusive actions may be cumulated in the same suit if pleaded in the alternative.

[923]*923In the matter before us, the requirements for cumulation of actions are met. The actions are within the jurisdiction of the court, in the proper venue and employ the same form of procedure. In maintaining the exception of improper cu-mulation of actions, the court used language from the article governing improper cumulation of parties. The court acknowledged the commonality of interests among the plaintiffs, but found that:

Judicial economy is always of interest to the court but manageability is also important. To allow these numerous claims to be cumulated into one lawsuit, would result in numerous mini trials, thereby defeating the purpose of cumu-lation. It would be difficult and confusing for both plaintiffs and defendants, and a virtual nightmare for the court. Therefore, the exception of improper cu-mulation is maintained.

It is clear this turns on one issue, that of whether the plaintiffs share a “community of interest.” To be properly joined, the parties must share a “community of interest,” that is the cumulated actions must arise out of the same facts or present the same factual and legal issues. Abshire v. State of Louisiana through Dept. of Ins., 93-923 (La.App. 3 Cir. 4/6/94), 636 So.2d 627, unit denied, 94-1213 (La.6/24/94), 640 So.2d 1332. Therefore, to determine whether the defendants in the instant case have a community of interest the question must be asked; do the cumulated causes of action arise out of the same facts, or do they present the same factual and legal issues? Miller v. Commercial Union Companies, 305 So.2d 560 (La.App. 2nd Cir.1974).

We note that the official revisions comments to Article 463 in pertinent part state:

While a single plaintiff may cumulate in the same suit two or more actions against the same defendant having no connection with each other, and based on different causes of actions, of necessity, greater | (¡restriction on the privilege of cumulating actions must be imposed when the suit is brought by plural plaintiffs or against plural defendants. The test to be employed in the latter case is the traditional one of a ‘community of interest between the parties joined.’

We believe the plaintiffs’ actions herein do reflect the same factual and legal issues.

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Related

Miller v. Commercial Union Companies
305 So. 2d 560 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1974)
Guitreau v. Juneau
479 So. 2d 431 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1985)
Darville v. Texaco, Inc.
447 So. 2d 473 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1984)
Ferguson v. Dirks
665 So. 2d 585 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1995)
Abshire v. State, Through Dept. of Ins.
636 So. 2d 627 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1994)

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Bluebook (online)
900 So. 2d 920, 4 La.App. 5 Cir. 1319, 2005 La. App. LEXIS 616, 2005 WL 599712, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/aaron-v-landcraft-inc-lactapp-2005.