Doan v. Transcanada Keystone Pipeline, LP

542 S.W.3d 794
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 23, 2018
DocketNO. 14-16-00573-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 542 S.W.3d 794 (Doan v. Transcanada Keystone Pipeline, LP) 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
Doan v. Transcanada Keystone Pipeline, LP, 542 S.W.3d 794 (Tex. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinion

Tracy Christopher, Justice

This case concerns TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, LP's attempts to acquire the right to construct and operate a pipeline *797through the land submerged beneath Muleshoe Lake, which is located on a tract of land owned by Wayne Hoang Nhut Doan. TransCanada believes that the submerged land is owned by the Port of Houston Authority of Harris County, Texas ("the Port Authority"), and so purchased a license from the Port Authority for the project and constructed the pipeline. Doan asserts that the land belongs to him. Doan sued in a Harris County district court, asserting a takings claim against the Port Authority, a trespass-to-try-title claim against two Port Authority employees, and a trespass claim against TransCanada. TransCanada raised a condemnation counterclaim. After a nonjury trial, the district court held that Doan is the sole remaining owner of the submerged land, allowed TransCanada to condemn an easement through the submerged land, awarded Doan $139 as just compensation for the easement, and denied all relief on Doan's trespass claim against TransCanada. On appeal, Doan contends that in Harris County, the county civil courts at law have exclusive jurisdiction over condemnation claims in which the amount of the condemnor's bona fide offer for the property is no more than $200,000, and thus, the ruling on that claim is void. He further contends that the district court erred in denying his motion to abate the case until such time as TransCanada made a bona fide offer of more than $200,000 for the property. In a conditional cross-appeal, TransCanada argues that the district court erred in finding that the Port Authority's live pleading sufficiently disclaimed ownership of the property and in holding that Doan is the property's sole owner.

We agree that in Harris County, the civil courts at law have exclusive jurisdiction over condemnation claims where the amount of the condemnor's bona fide offer is no more than $200,000. Moreover, the same statute grants the Harris County civil courts at law exclusive jurisdiction over all takings claims. Thus, the district court's rulings on these claims are void for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. Regarding the district court's purported denial of Doan's motion to abate, we conclude that the issue has not been preserved for appeal. As for TransCanada's challenge to the district court's finding that Doan "is the sole remaining owner of the property," the court recited that it had considered the evidence, and in the absence of a reporter's record, we must presume that the evidence supports the finding.

We modify the judgment to vacate for lack of jurisdiction the district court's rulings on TransCanada's condemnation claim against Doan and on Doan's takings claim against the Port Authority. As modified, we affirm the district court's judgment.

I. BACKGROUND

TransCanada wished to build a pipeline crossing beneath Muleshoe Lake, which is located on a tract of land owned by Doan in Harris County. Believing that the submerged land ("the Property") is owned by the Port Authority under the public-trust doctrine, TransCanada paid the Port Authority nearly $43,000 for a ten-year renewable license to construct, maintain, and operate the pipeline within the Property, which is referred to in the license as "Port property." Having obtained a license from the Port Authority to construct the pipeline through the Property, TransCanada did not offer to pay Doan for an easement for the same use of the Property.

TransCanada also needed an easement across the lake's dry banks, but it was unable to agree with Doan on a price. Three months after obtaining its license from the Port Authority, TransCanada filed a condemnation petition in Harris County Court at Law No. 4 to obtain a *798permanent, non-exclusive, 50-foot-wide right-of-way and easement across the lake's dry banks. The trial court appointed special commissioners to determine the Property's value, but before the special commissioners' hearing, TransCanada and Doan agreed to a $100,000 purchase price for the easement. The parties further agreed that their settlement of the condemnation claim across the lake's dry banks did not resolve the disputed ownership of the Property, that is, the land submerged beneath the lake.

Nearly a year later, Doan sued TransCanada in Harris County's 190th District Court, later adding as defendants the Port Authority and its employees Roger Guenther and Mark Vincent. In his live pleadings before trial, Doan asserted (a) a takings claim against the Port Authority, (b) trespass-to-try-title claims against Guenther and Vincent, and (c) a trespass claim against TransCanada for its use of the Property. TransCanada denied that Doan owned the Property, but pleading in the alternative, TransCanada asserted a counterclaim for condemnation.

In its First Amended Answer, the Port Authority denied having claimed that it "owns or has title to or has taken or intends to take possession" of the Property. "To the contrary," the Port Authority added, "the Port Authority has determined that affirmatively claiming and litigating ownership of the submerged land in question is not in the Port Authority's or the public's best interest." In a single summary-judgment motion, the Port Authority, Guenther, and Vincent moved for a take-nothing judgment on the respective claims against them, on the grounds both of immunity and that they allegedly had taken no action to claim ownership of the Property. The district court granted the motion without stating the grounds.

A month later, Doan moved to abate TranCanada's condemnation counterclaim on the ground that TransCanada had not made a bona fide offer to acquire the property. TransCanada, however, agreed to make a bona fide offer, and it moved jointly with Doan for a continuance for that purpose. TransCanada had the Property appraised and made a bona fide offer to purchase an easement from Doan for $139. Doan rejected the offer, and the case proceeded to trial on ownership and value.

After Doan announced ready for trial, he pointed out to the district court section 25.1032(c) of the Texas Government Code, under which Harris County civil courts at law have exclusive jurisdiction over statutory eminent-domain proceedings in which the amount of the condemnor's bona fide offer is no more than $200,000.1 The trial court overruled the jurisdictional challenge.

After the nonjury trial, the district court found that (a) "the pleading by the Houston Port Authority is a sufficient disclaimer" of the Port Authority's ownership, (b) Doan is the sole owner of the Property, and (c) the fair market value of the Property at the time of the taking was $139. The district court rendered judgment in accordance with these findings, granting TransCanada its requested easement and *799overruling Doan's combined motion to modify the judgment and motion for new trial. Doan has appealed, and TransCanada has filed a conditional cross-appeal.

II. ISSUES PRESENTED

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
542 S.W.3d 794, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/doan-v-transcanada-keystone-pipeline-lp-texapp-2018.