Coastal States Crude Gathering Co. v. Cummings

415 S.W.2d 240, 26 Oil & Gas Rep. 803, 1967 Tex. App. LEXIS 2420
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedMay 4, 1967
Docket4609
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 415 S.W.2d 240 (Coastal States Crude Gathering Co. v. Cummings) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Coastal States Crude Gathering Co. v. Cummings, 415 S.W.2d 240, 26 Oil & Gas Rep. 803, 1967 Tex. App. LEXIS 2420 (Tex. Ct. App. 1967).

Opinion

OPINION

TIREY, Justice.

This is an appeal from a summary judgment. The Coastal States Crude Gathering Company, appellant here, brought this action against defendant, L. W. Cummings, and others, the landowners, on the ground that they had the right to construct two additional pipelines across certain lands belonging to the defendants under two pipeline right-of-way agreements. Pipeline easements were both originally executed by the defendants’ predecessors in title on November 10, 1920, and were duly filed for record in the Deed Records of Fort Bend County during the month of November, 1920. Sinclair Pipe Line Company, appellant’s predecessor in title, constructed an 8-inch pipeline across the property during the year 1921. By mesne conveyances, appellant acquired the pipeline previously built and owned by Sinclair Pipe Line Company, which extends from Corpus Christi to Houston, along with all of the easements in connection therewith and including the two easements mentioned above. Appellant, after an attempt by appellees to interfere with the construction, filed an application for an injunction and a temporary restraining order and the trial court, on September 7, 1965, granted a temporary restraining order, temporarily restraining ap-pellees from interfering with appellant’s use and enjoyment of the rights granted in the two easements, including the construction of the additional pipelines.

Thereafter, appellees filed a motion to dissolve the temporary restraining order, and thereafter appellant amended its pleading and filed a motion containing an alternate count for condemnation under the provisions of Article 3269, R.C.S., in the event of the trial court’s refusal to enter a temporary injunction. The court did grant the temporary order, as heretofore stated. This order enjoined appellees from interfering with appellant’s construction and appellant's use and enjoyment of a 60-foot wide area through uncultivated land, and a 161/4-foot-wide strip through the cultivated land. The order also permitted appellant to immediate possession under its alternate plea for condemnation upon the part of a 60-foot right-of-way not covered by the prior ruling on a 16i^-foot-wide strip through the cultivated land.

Appellees filed an original answer and cross-action and appellant filed its second amended original petition and, prior to any action on the part of the trial court, both the appellant and the appellees filed motions for summary judgment.

On October 10, 1966, the court severed all issues relating to damages and all issues in connection with appellant’s alternative plea for condemnation, and denied appellant’s motion and granted appellees’, to which appellant duly excepted and gave notice of appeal. No findings of fact nor conclusions of law were requested by either party, and none were filed. The foregoing statement is taken substantially from appellant’s brief, and appellees say that it is, substantially correct.

Appellant’s First Point is:

“The trial court erred in denying appellant’s motion for summary judgment, because the two pipelines right-of-way easements grant multiple line rights, with the right to expand the user by the user by the construction of additional lines, at any time, which rights are valid, as a matter of law.”

We are in accord with this view, and we reverse and render the judgment of the trial court for reasons hereinafter stated.

*242 The two pipeline right-of-way easements are virtually identical and contain substantially the following pertinent provisions:

“For and in consideration of Sixty-Six and 66/100 Dollars to us the undersigned in hand paid, receipt of which is hereby acknowledged, we Irene B. Dieter and her husband, A. J. Dieter do hereby grant to S. M. Briscoe, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, his successors or assigns, the right-of-way or easement and privilege, to lay, repair, maintain, operate and remove a pipeline or pipelines for the transportation of oil or gas or any of its products or by-products, * * *.
“To have and to hold unto the said grantee, his successors or assigns, so long as such line or lines shall be maintained, for the purpose of constructing, inspecting, repairing, operating and maintaining the same and the removal of such at will, in whole or in part. * * * Should more than one pipeline be laid under this grant at any time Sixty-six and 66/100 Dollars shall be paid for each additional line so laid, besides the damages above provided for. Should it become necessary to change the size of the pipe, the damage, if any, in making such change to be paid by the said grantee, his successors or assigns.” (emphasis added).

The sole question before the trial court was the proper construction to be made of each of the two written contracts. First of all, it was the duty of the court to construe each of the written instruments and, in so doing, it was bound by the rules of construction heretofore announced by our Supreme Court:

“The governing rule in the construction of written instruments is ‘that every part of the instrument should be harmonized and given effect to if it can be done’. Hancock v. Butler, 21 Tex. (804) 806. But this rule does not demand that every part of the deed shall be treated as of equal weight in the solution of every question that may arise. ‘The habendum may fye entirely rejected if repugnant to the other clauses of the conveyance.’ Devl. Deeds, § 213.” Moore v. City of Waco, 85 Tex. 206, 20 S.W. 61, 63. “The languáge of a deed is the language of the grantor, and, if there be a doubt as to its construction, it should be resolved against him.” Curdy v. Stafford, 88 Tex. 120, 30 S.W. 551, 552. “The dominant purpose in construing a deed is to ascertain the indention of the parties as expressed in the deed itself; and such intention expressed therein is a controlling factor.” Bumpass v. Bond, 131 Tex. 266, 114 S.W.2d 1172, 1174, pars. 2 and 3, and cases there cited. (The foregoing quotation taken from the case of Moore v. Proctor, Tex.Civ.App., 234 S.W.2d 479).

Insofar as we know, the foregoing rules of construction have never been changed nor modified by our Supreme Court, and we think they apply here.

We have given much consideration to the language in each of the instruments before us and it is our view that each is full, clea¶ and comprehensive and free from ambiguity and all doubt as to their provisions and the intention of the parties. The only issue before the trial court was whether or not! each of the easements created multiple pipeline grants with the right in the future to expand the servitude. We think each did.; It is our view that the application of the general rule of construction heretofore quoted requires us to so hold. We think such view is in line with the holding of our Texas Courts of Appeals where the provisions in the easements are substantially as they are here. The most recent case is Phillips Petroleum Company v. Lovell, Tex.Civ.App., 392 S.W.2d 748, Amarillo Court (1965) error ref., n. r. e.

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Bluebook (online)
415 S.W.2d 240, 26 Oil & Gas Rep. 803, 1967 Tex. App. LEXIS 2420, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/coastal-states-crude-gathering-co-v-cummings-texapp-1967.