Drew v. Mumford

325 P.2d 240, 160 Cal. App. 2d 271, 1958 Cal. App. LEXIS 2118
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedMay 9, 1958
DocketCiv. 22972
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 325 P.2d 240 (Drew v. Mumford) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Drew v. Mumford, 325 P.2d 240, 160 Cal. App. 2d 271, 1958 Cal. App. LEXIS 2118 (Cal. Ct. App. 1958).

Opinion

FOURT, J.

This is an appeal from a judgment declaring defendants to be the owners in fee simple of a small strip of ground.

In November, 1944, when defendants acquired their property, the adjacent property was owned by plaintiff Gladys C. Drew and her deceased husband. At this time a wooden and wire fence was standing. There is no testimony in the record indicating when or by whom this fence was constructed, or of any agreements which may have been entered into at that time that such fence was or was not to constitute the boundary line between the properties. This fence, which had become dilapidated and which was described as “raggly” was torn down on or about January, 1956, by plaintiff Milan Ira Drew. Later in January or February, 1956, a new wire fence was constructed by defendants. There is a conflict in the evi *273 dence as to whether the new wire fence was constructed, as plaintiffs contend, approximately a foot to a foot and one-half further into their property, or whether it was constructed, as defendants contend, along the same line as the wooden fence. The parties did not have any discussions apparently as to the location of the fence except for a comment which Mr. Drew testified that he made to Mr. Mumford after the old fence had been removed that “the best way to do when you were putting up a fence is always to have your property surveyed and you know you have it on the line.”

The testimony is undisputed that defendants alone assumed the obligation to pay for the fence and that plaintiffs promised defendants to make a “donation on a fence,” and did actually pay to defendants each month for six months approximately one-half of the amount of the contractual obligation assumed by defendants on an 18-month contract; that plaintiffs thereafter refused to make any additional contributions ; that plaintiffs then had their property surveyed, which survey indicated the fence to be located on their property 21 inches from the property line described in their deed; and that plaintiffs then instituted the present action for an injunction to restrain defendants from maintaining the wire fence upon plaintiffs’ land, and demanding that defendants be ordered to remove said fence from plaintiffs’ property. In their answer defendants asserted title to said property to be in defendants, setting up the defenses of adverse possession, agreed boundary, laches and estoppel.

Findings of fact and conclusions of law were waived, and the only brief which has been filed is appellants’ opening brief, in which it is claimed that the trial court should have granted appellants injunctive relief; that title by adverse possession was not established; that there was no agreement between the parties, either express or implied, establishing a boundary line that appellants were not estopped to claim the true boundary; and that appellants were not guilty of laches.

It is fundamental that the propriety of issuing an injunction rests in the sound discretion of the court, and being a summary and extraordinary remedy, mandatory injunctions are rarely granted in the absence of a clear showing of irreparable damage under particular circumstances indicating the party seeking the injunction is deserving of injunctive relief and has offered to do equity. The complaint makes no mention of any offer by appellants to assume the cost of moving the fence, and appellants concede there is no *274 evidence in the record as to the cost of moving the fence. Nevertheless, appellants in their brief state “it can be assumed that this expense would be trivial comparable to the loss sustained by the appellants if the judgment of the trial court is allowed to stand.” This court lacks the power on appeal to design a remedy which appellants for the first time now offer as an equitable solution to the problem, that of granting “the appellants injunctive relief on the condition that they bear the expense of moving said fence to the true boundary line. ’ ’

Appellants argue correctly that “mere acquiescence in the existence of a fence and the occupying of land up to it does not amount to an agreement that it was an accepted boundary line,” relying upon Staniford v. Trombly, 181 Cal. 372 [186 P. 599] and Dibirt v. Bopp, 4 Cal.App.2d 541 [41 P.2d 174]. Appellants then recognize “the rule that coterminous owners may by agreement implied from acquiescence establish and fix their mutual boundary line.” (Emphasis added.) They contend, however, that the rule is applicable only where the true line is otherwise unknown or uncertain, and cite Meacci v. Kochergen, 141 Cal.App.2d 207 [296 P.2d 573] as authority that “a boundary is considered definite and certain when by survey it can be made certain from the deed.” The case of Meacci v. Kochergen, supra, was a quiet title and ejectment action and no special defenses were set up in the answer. In reversing the judgment of the trial court for defendant, the court went on to state (at p. 213) : “. . . there was no uncertainty as to the true boundary line. The true boundary line was readily ascertainable from the survey made, and the line sought to be established by the defendant was not certain. We conclude that, under the circumstances shown, plaintiffs were free to claim the true boundary line as shown in their deed.” (Emphasis added.)

That it is the particular factual situation which is determinative was stressed in Wilder v. Nicolaus, 50 Cal.App. 776, 783-784 [195 P. 1068], “. . . there is no doubt of the existence of the fence and the occupancy of the land as claimed by appellant for a much longer period than required by the statute of limitations. But it is claimed by respondent that there was no uncertainty as to the location of the true boundary line, and there was no agreement that the fence was on the true line.

“We may notice only the latter contention, as it is decisive of the controversy. Whether the circumstances, in the ab *275 sence of direct evidence, would require a conclusion favorable to appellant, we need not determine, since there is the testimony of two witnesses to the effect that there was no such agreement between the owners of the property at the time the fence was built. This testimony is the subject of mirth and derision on the part of appellant, but its credibility was manifestly for the determination of the trial court.” (See also Moniz v. Peterman, 220 Cal. 429, 435 [31 P.2d 353].)

The problem presented by acquiescence in a fence as a boundary line between coterminous owners when the fence was situated 18 inches from the boundary line indicated by a survey made after a dispute had arisen, was considered' in Price v. De Reyes, 161 Cal. 484 [119 P. 893], where plaintiffs contended the rule was applicable only if the true boundary was absolutely unascertainable. The court (at p. 489) stated : “We find no such qualification of the rule stated in any of the authorities.

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Bluebook (online)
325 P.2d 240, 160 Cal. App. 2d 271, 1958 Cal. App. LEXIS 2118, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/drew-v-mumford-calctapp-1958.