Fred E. Young, Inc. v. Brush Mountain Sportsmen's Ass'n

697 A.2d 984, 1997 Pa. Super. LEXIS 1627, 1997 WL 345761
CourtSupreme Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedJune 24, 1997
DocketNo. 392 C.P. 1991
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 697 A.2d 984 (Fred E. Young, Inc. v. Brush Mountain Sportsmen's Ass'n) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fred E. Young, Inc. v. Brush Mountain Sportsmen's Ass'n, 697 A.2d 984, 1997 Pa. Super. LEXIS 1627, 1997 WL 345761 (Pa. 1997).

Opinion

BROSKY, Judge.

This is an appeal from the final decree entered in this declaratory judgment action. Appellant presents the following issues for review: (1) whether the trial court erred in determining that appellee had title to the land; (2) whether appellant acquired the property by adverse possession; (3) whether the trial court erred in denying appellant’s petition requesting that other landowners be notified of this action and permitted to intervene; (4) whether the trial court was bound by the factual findings and conclusions of law made by a different judge in a prior action involving the same parties; (5) whether the procedure followed by the trial court was arbitrary and prejudicial; and (6) whether the doctrine of estoppel by deed bars a finding for appellee. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm.

Before addressing these claims, it is necessary to recount the pertinent history of this case. During the late 1700’s, the parties’ predecessors in title, Ludwick Sells, William Allen and John Porter, began to settle the Pennsylvania wilderness in what is now Blair County.1 Ludwick Sells was granted a warrant in 1786, but did not have his property surveyed until 1794. The Porter and Allen tracts were respectively warranted and surveyed in 1795 and 1796. However, both the Porter and Allen warrants noted that there were improvements on the land and that the owners’ respective interests commenced as of 1792. Patents were later issued for the Porter, Allen and Sells tracts in 1800, 1808 and 1834, respectively.

The surveys of the Porter, Allen and Sells tracts were all performed by the same individual, John Canan.2 The Sells survey identified William Allen and Michael Fetters as adjoining landowners. Neither the Porter nor Allen surveys referred to Sells as an adjoiner, however.3 For reasons which are unclear, Sells did not settle on the land iden[987]*987tified in his survey as adjoining that of Allen and Fetters. He instead located to the southwest on a tract adjoining John Porter’s land.

Appellee, Brush Mountain Sportsmen’s Association (Brush Mountain), acquired the land formerly owned by John Porter by two separate conveyances in 1948 and 1949. Appellant, Fred E. Young, Inc. (Fred Young) subsequently purchased the former Sells tract in 1965. After appellant bought the property, a dispute arose between the parties as to the ownership of approximately forty acres of land encompassed within the metes and bounds descriptions of both the Sells and Porter tracts. Consequently, appellant commenced a quiet title action against appellee in April of 1966.

The Honorable Samuel Jubelirer conducted hearings thereon in September, 1967, March 1968 and July, 1968. For reasons which do not appear of record, the case languished in the Court of Common Pleas until 1981.4 On June 10, 1981, Judge O’Kicki issued an order denying appellant’s quiet title action, but this order was not entered upon the docket until April 16, 1984. Appellant timely filed exceptions, as well as post-trial motions and supplemental post-trial motions to the trial court’s order. Judge O’Kieki dismissed the exceptions in October of 1986, but a final judgment was never entered. No appeal was taken.

Appellant renewed its request for relief by filing the instant declaratory judgment action against appellee in February of 1991. Appel-lee filed preliminary objections asserting that the action was barred by reason of the doctrine of res judicata. Judge Jolene Grubb Kopriva agreed and dismissed appellant’s complaint. Appellant timely appealed to this court. In an unpublished memorandum, we reversed and remanded for trial. See Fred E. Young, Inc. v. Brush Mountain Sportsmen’s Association, 424 Pa.Super. 658, 617 A.2d 399 (1992) (No. 02000 Pittsburgh 1991). The Supreme Court declined to grant allocatur. Id., 533 Pa. 611, 618 A.2d 401 (1992).

Upon remand of the case, appellant filed a motion for summary judgment as well as a petition for rule to show cause why certain other property owners should not be notified of this litigation and permitted to intervene therein. The trial court denied both motions. The Honorable Norman D. Callan, sitting as the sole trier of fact, conducted a three day trial on September 27 and 28, 1995 as well as on December 27, 1995.

Judge Callan filed an adjudication and decree nisi in February, 1996. Appellant timely filed post-trial motions which were ultimately dismissed. A final decree was thereafter entered upon the docket. Appellant timely appealed therefrom.

When reviewing the decision of the trial court in a declaratory judgment action, our scope of review is narrow. O’Brien v. Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., 455 Pa.Super. 568, 573, 689 A.2d 254, 257 (1997). Consequently, we are limited to determining whether the trial court’s findings are supported by substantial evidence, whether an error of law was committed or whether the trial court abused its discretion, Walker v. Ehlinger, 544 Pa. 298, 300 n. 2, 676 A.2d 213, 214 n. 2 (1996).

The test is not whether we would have reached the same result on the evidence presented, but whether the trial court’s conclusion can reasonably be drawn from the evidence. Where the trial court’s factual determinations are adequately supported by the evidence we may not substitute our judgment for that of the trial court.

Clearfield Volunteer Fire Department v. BP Oil, 412 Pa.Super. 29, 31-32, 602 A.2d 877, 879, allocatur denied, 531 Pa. 650, 613 A.2d 556 (1992) (citations omitted). We shall evaluate the decision of the trial court with these considerations in mind.

Appellant contends that the trial court erred in concluding that appellee rather than appellant was the owner of the disputed land. In support of this claim, appellant relies upon the fact that his predecessor [988]*988in title, Sells, was the first to survey the land in question. Appellant thus asserts that it has superior title. Appellant’s assessment is erroneous.

Contrary to appellant’s belief, the' Sells survey did not cover the disputed land. Sells’ survey calls for the land as being adjoined by the London land as well as the property of William Allen and Michael Fetters.5 See Plaintiffs Exhibit 5 (Survey of Ludwick Sells’ Tract). Based on the description set forth in this survey, the Sells tract was situated northeast of the parcel in dispute here. See Plaintiffs Exhibit 2 (Connected Draft of 17 tracts of land, which depicts the location of the Sells, Porter, Allen and other tracts pertinent to this case). Porter’s survey, however, specifically includes the contested land. See Defendant’s Exhibit 15 (Survey of John Porter’s Tract).

We recognize that the precise location of the Sells tract was a matter that was vigorously contested by the parties, with each supplying expert testimony as well as documentary evidence on this matter. It thus fell to the trial court to evaluate the conflicting evidence and testimony on this subject.

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

Related

Valentine, K. v. Wetzel, M.
Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2019
Ardolino, R. v. BR Associates
Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2019
City of Philadelphia v. F. Galdo
181 A.3d 1289 (Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, 2018)
Weible, R. v. Wells, W.
156 A.3d 1220 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2017)
Angstadt, H. v. Faddis, G.
Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2016
A & F Builders LLC v. David-Lea Co.
22 Pa. D. & C.5th 315 (Delaware County Court of Common Pleas, 2011)
Rader v. Martin Stone Quarries, Inc.
19 Pa. D. & C.5th 461 (Berks County Court of Common Pleas, 2010)
Callari v. Rosenwasser
63 Pa. D. & C.4th 366 (Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas, 2003)
Nyman v. Anchor Development, L.L.C.
2003 UT 27 (Utah Supreme Court, 2003)
Ross Development Co. v. Advanced Building Development, Inc.
803 A.2d 194 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2002)
Loavenbruck v. Rohrbach
2002 ME 73 (Supreme Judicial Court of Maine, 2002)
Flannery v. Stump
786 A.2d 255 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2001)
PARC Holdings, Inc. v. Killian
785 A.2d 106 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2001)
Watkins v. Watkins
775 A.2d 841 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2001)
Whittington v. Episcopal Hospital
768 A.2d 1144 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2001)
Seven Springs Farm, Inc. v. Croker
748 A.2d 740 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 2000)
Adams v. Adams
725 A.2d 824 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1999)
Porter v. Karivalis
718 A.2d 823 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1998)
Bride v. Robwood Lodge
713 A.2d 109 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1998)
ALTHAUS BY ALTHAUS v. Cohen
710 A.2d 1147 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1998)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
697 A.2d 984, 1997 Pa. Super. LEXIS 1627, 1997 WL 345761, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fred-e-young-inc-v-brush-mountain-sportsmens-assn-pa-1997.