Collar v. Ulster & Delaware Railroad

72 Misc. 274, 131 N.Y.S. 56
CourtNew York County Courts
DecidedMay 15, 1911
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 72 Misc. 274 (Collar v. Ulster & Delaware Railroad) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York County Courts primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Collar v. Ulster & Delaware Railroad, 72 Misc. 274, 131 N.Y.S. 56 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1911).

Opinion

Kellogg, J.

The cause of action stated in the complaint is that the plaintiff was, and still is, the owner of the freehold situated on the easterly side of Wells avenue, in the city of Oneonta, N. Y.,. known as Ho. 11, and that the defendant is a domestic railroad corporation, duly organized, incorporated, and existing under and by virtue of the laws of the State of New York, and that it is now the owner and in pos^ session of and operates and conducts its said railroad, together with its stations, round-houses, tracks, cars, trains, engines and switches near plaintiff’s property in the said city of Oneonta; and that it has continued to so operate its said railroad, consisting of the property mentioned, for many years last past.

It is also claimed by the plaintiff that the defendant has maintained, and threatens • to continue to maintain, in the [275]*275immediate vicinity of plaintiff’s said dwelling house, a nuisance, as follows, to wit:-In the operation of its road, and in using and running its engines, it thereby causes large quantities of smoke, soot, dust, ashes and cinders to be cast upon plaintiff’s dwelling and lands; that said nuisance consists, further, among other things, of soft coal, and improper fuel, and causes such smoke, soot, cinders, ashes and dust to pour forth from its engines and smokestacks, and to become deposited on plaintiff’s premises in large quantities, both within and without said dwelling house, where plaintiff resides ; that said smoke, soot, cinders and ashes are obnoxious, unwholesome and injurious to the plaintiff and her family, and taint the air, soil and destroy furniture and wearing apparel; destroy vegetation, trees, fruit and flowers; render said dwelling house and premises unfit for habitation; greatly discolor and injure the sale of said dwelling; and that the defendant permits and maintains its engines and cars in proximity to plaintiff’s dwelling to create loud and penetrating noises and unnecessary sounds, by blowing of whistles, escape of steam and continuous pumping of air; that, by reason of such facts, the defendant has and threatens to continue a nuisance, which has diminished the value of plaintiff’s premises in the sum of $500. We thus have three charges against the defendant set forth in the complaint, to wit: a nuisance, improper fuel and unnecessary sounds.

The action of the plaintiff, then, was solely for damages, in that plaintiff’s property had been diminished in value; and, in order to entitle the plaintiff to recover, it was necessary for her to establish that her property had been so diminished in value.

It appears that the plaintiff was in occupancy of the premises of which she claims to be the owner in fee prior to the time the defendant came into Oneonta and constructed its yards and tracks and operated its railroad.

The answer in substance put in issue plaintiff’s ownership of the premises, the allegations of damage, the jurisdiction of the court, and affirmatively alleged the defendant’s ownership of its property and its right to use and occupy the same for the purposes and in the manner in which it had so used and occupied the same.

[276]*276I 'think the court was without jurisdiction to determine any of the issues involved in this action.

The City Court of Oneonta is a court of limited jurisdiction. In fact, so far as it relates to this kind of an action, the jurisdiction is no greater than that of a justice’s court. There is nothing in the complaint tending to show that this is what is sometimes called a possessory action; in other words, it is based on the assumption of ownership and upon the assumption of injury to the inheritance.

The action for a nuisance is a common-law action, or, in any event, so far as it may be deemed a statutory action, it is regulated by the provisions of the Code of Civil Proc.edure (§ 1'660) and contemplates the bringing of the action into a court of general original jurisdiction, and not in a court of special or limited jurisdiction, such as the City Court of Oneonta. It follows, therefore, that the plaintiff has entirely mistaken her remedy or, in any event, is mistaken in her choice of the court she has made to seek relief.

It is provided in the Code of Civil Procedure, in relation to actions in justice’s court, that, if it shall appear by the plaintiff’s own showing (§ 2956) that the title to real estate is in question, and that title is disputed by the defendant, the court must dismiss the action. The theory of the plaintiff is, here, that she is the owner of the premises mentioned in the complaint, and that the same have been depleted in value. Clearly the court has not jurisdiction of the action, as it possesses no equitable jurisdiction. It has no power to abate the alleged nuisance, nor to adjudge a certain existing condition to constitute a nuisance; and the defendant was entitled to have the action dismissed.

In order to sustain the jurisdiction of the City Court in this action, attention has been called to the language employed by section 212, subdivision 2, of the city charter of Oneonta.

Section 212 provides: “Jurisdiction in civil actions and proceedings.— Except as limited by the next succeeding section, the city court shall have jurisdiction of the following civil actions and proceedings, to wit: Subdivision 2. An action to prove damages for a personal injury or injuries to property where the sum claimed does not exceed five hundred dollars.”

[277]*277Section 213 following provides, however, that the City Court is not to talce cognizance of certain actions, and says: The city court shall not take cognizance of a civil action in either of the following’ cases: I. Where the title to real property comes in question, as is prescribed.in title three of chapter nineteen of the code of civil procedure, except as provided in section two hundred and forty-two of this act, and when such question arises, the pleadings and practice shall be the same as are provided by law for courts of justices of the peace in towns in regard thereto.”

Section 212, above referred to, relates solely to actions to recover penalties; and for all practical purposes the City Court of Oneonta possesses the same jurisdiction and no other than that which is vested in courts of justices of the peace. It may be conceded that an action in justice’s court might be maintained for trespass, by alleging and proving -the actual or constructive possession of the plaintiff in such a case (Carter v. Pitcher, 87 Hun, 580; Van Rensselaer v. Van Rensselaer, 9 Johns. 377; Douglas v. Valentine, 7 id. 273; Russell v. Scott, 9 Cow. 279; Edwards v. Noyes, 65 N. Y. 125), but the injury would be solely to the person and not to the fee of the land.

This is dearly so, as trespass is defined to be any misfeasance or act whereby another is injuriously treated or damnified; any unlawful acts committed with violence, .actual or implied, to the' person, property or rights of another; any unauthorized entry on the realty of another to the damage thereof. 1 Bouv. L. Dict. 747.

Every unwarrantable entry on one’s soil the law entitles a trespass, for every man’s land is, in the eye of the law, inclosed, and set apart. 3 Black. Comm. 209; Bileu v. Paisley, 21 Pac. Rep. 934.

To disturb a peaceable possession, as well as doing some damage to real property, is a trespass. Hulick v. Scovil, 9 Ill. 159; Newcombe v. Erwin, 22 N. W. Rep. 66; Talbot v. English, 156 Ind. 299; McAdam Landl. & Ten., § 418; 8 Words & Phrases, 7088.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Pacific Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. Tetirick, Gdn.
1938 OK 658 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 1938)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
72 Misc. 274, 131 N.Y.S. 56, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/collar-v-ulster-delaware-railroad-nycountyct-1911.