Graham v. Pirkey

212 S.W.3d 507, 2006 Tex. App. LEXIS 6313, 2006 WL 2032555
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJuly 21, 2006
Docket03-05-00542-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 212 S.W.3d 507 (Graham v. Pirkey) 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
Graham v. Pirkey, 212 S.W.3d 507, 2006 Tex. App. LEXIS 6313, 2006 WL 2032555 (Tex. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

OPINION

BEA ANN SMITH, Justice.

Jean Graham sued Louis Pirkey for damages stemming from nuisance, trespass, and the unlawful diversion of water onto her property. Pirkey moved for summary judgment alleging that Graham’s claims were barred by the statute of limitations. The district court granted Pir- *509 key’s motion and dismissed all of Graham’s claims. Because we hold that issues of material fact exist as to some of Graham’s claims, we affirm the summary judgment in part and reverse and remand in part for further proceedings.

BACKGROUND

Graham and Pirkey are neighbors whose homes are situated on adjacent lakefront tracts. In 1990, John Steele, the previous owner of Pirkey’s property, graded and leveled part of his land to install a pool and a new driveway. At the same time, the record indicates that Steele also installed a new drainage pipe that diverted rainwater runoff to Graham’s property. Pirkey acquired the property in 1991, shortly after Steele added these improvements. Graham insists that these modifications altered the pre-existing drainage pattern for rainwater runoff and caused “large amounts of surface water to be diverted” onto her property, damaging her deck and eroding portions of her backyard.

Graham complained to Pirkey. In response to Graham’s complaints, Pirkey asked Tom Hall, Steele’s contractor, to investigate whether the erosion on Graham’s property was due to diverted runoff. In July 1993, Pirkey sent a letter to Graham informing her that Hall had inspected the properties and was of the opinion that “the problems with your deck have to do with poor construction and the erosion which occurred when Lake Travis flooded in late '91 and early '92.” However, Pirkey agreed to inquire as to whether there was a feasible solution for preventing water from flowing onto Graham’s property.

Graham hired Thomas Loomis, a professional engineer and hydrologist, to perform a preliminary drainage analysis. In April 1996, Loomis sent a letter to Graham in which he discussed his findings. Loom-is asserted that “flows have been diverted by your neighbor such that they now enter your property in a location different from where they did prior to the construction ... of a drainage pipe and inlet system.” 1 Loomis suggested that the “footings of the lower portion of [Graham’s] backyard deck” have been undercut by the “erosive flows from surface runoff supplied from the new pipe outflows.” 2

In 2002, Pirkey removed the wall that channeled rainwater into the sump area surrounding the drainage pipe added in 1990. Graham claims that the removal of the wall further altered the directional flow of the diverted water, creating a new runoff channel that dumps water on the front of her property and has now destroyed her front yard fence and other portions of her yard. In January 2004, Graham sued Pirkey in district court for damages stemming from nuisance, trespass and the alleged unlawful diversion of water. 3 Pirkey generally denied Graham’s allegations and moved for summary judgment, asserting that all of Graham’s claims were barred by the statute of limitations. Based on the supreme court’s holding in *510 Schneider Nat’l Carriers, Inc. v. Bates, 147 S.W.3d 264 (Tex.2004), Pirkey argued that the runoff from each rainfall constitutes a permanent nuisance, that Graham’s cause of action accrued in 1990, and that the applicable limitations period expired two years later.

In Schneider several renters and homeowners, who had resided near the Houston Ship Channel for at least two years, alleged that their property was constantly covered with dirt and soot that emanated from the defendants’ manufacturing operations. 4 Schneider, 147 S.W.3d at 268. The residents’ affidavits indicated that the offensive conditions were ongoing and frequent. Id. The defendants moved for summary judgment on limitations asserting that the residents’ affidavits established as a matter of law that their claims alleged permanent nuisances. Id. at 269. The supreme court held:

If a nuisance occurs several times in the years leading up to a trial and is likely to continue, jurors will generally have enough evidence of frequency and duration to reasonably evaluate its impact on neighboring property values. In such cases, the nuisance should be treated as permanent, even if the exact dates, frequency, or extent of future damage remain unknown. Conversely, a nuisance as to which any future impact remains speculative at the time of trial must be deemed “temporary.”

Id. at 280. Applying this distinction to the residents’ claims, the supreme court found that none of the residents’ affidavits alleged “conditions that were so sporadic or unpredictable that a jury would have to guess their effect.” Id. at 291. Therefore, the supreme court held that the nuisances were permanent and that the residents’ claims were barred by the statute of limitations. Id. at 291-93.

In response to Pfrkey’s motion for summary judgment, Graham claimed that Pir-key substantially changed the original nuisance in 2002 by removing the wall that channeled water into the sump area and, ultimately, into the drainage pipe. Graham maintains that this act created a new and distinct nuisance. The district court granted Pirkey’s summary-judgment motion and dismissed all of Graham’s claims. This appeal followed.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

Summary judgment is appropriate when there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and judgment should be granted in favor of the movant as a matter of law. Diversicare Gen. Partner, Inc. v. Rubio, 185 S.W.3d 842, 846 (Tex.2005); KPMG Peat Marwick v. Harrison County Hous. Fin. Corp., 988 S.W.2d 746, 748 (Tex.1999). When reviewing a summary judgment, we take as true all competent evidence favorable to the nonmovant and we indulge every reasonable inference and resolve any doubts in the nonmovant’s favor. Southwestern Elec. Power Co. v. Grant, 73 S.W.3d 211, 215 (Tex.2002). A defendant moving for summary judgment on the affirmative defense of limitations has the burden to (1) conclusively prove when the cause of action accrued and (2) negate the discovery rule, if it applies and has been pleaded or otherwise raised. 5 Diversicare Gen. Partner, 185 S.W.3d at 846; KPMG, 988 S.W.2d at 748. If a movant establishes that the statute of limitations bars an action, the nonmovant must then adduce summary judgment proof raising a *511

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
212 S.W.3d 507, 2006 Tex. App. LEXIS 6313, 2006 WL 2032555, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/graham-v-pirkey-texapp-2006.