Humble Pipe Line Co. v. Wm. T. Burton Industries, Inc.

205 So. 2d 724, 28 Oil & Gas Rep. 174, 1967 La. App. LEXIS 4888
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 19, 1967
DocketNo. 7204
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 205 So. 2d 724 (Humble Pipe Line Co. v. Wm. T. Burton Industries, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Humble Pipe Line Co. v. Wm. T. Burton Industries, Inc., 205 So. 2d 724, 28 Oil & Gas Rep. 174, 1967 La. App. LEXIS 4888 (La. Ct. App. 1967).

Opinion

BAILES, Judge.

This is an expropriation proceeding instituted by plaintiff, Humble Pipe Line Company (Humble), to acquire the right to place a sixteen inch pipe line across certain property of defendant, Wm. T. Burton Industries, Inc. (Burton), located in Iberville Parish. After lengthy proceedings in the trial court, judgment was rendered in favor of Humble and against Burton awarding Humble the right it sought upon the payment to Burton of the total sum of $13,649.-04 in compensation and damages. Additionally, Humble was cast for all court costs, including $3,600 as fees for Burton’s expert witnesses. Being dissatisfied with the judgment of expropriation, the amount of the award for compensation and damages and the assessment of fees awarded the defendant’s expert witnesses, the defendant has appealed. The plaintiff, likewise dissatisfied with the trial court’s judgment, has answered the appeal contending that the trial court’s award of compensation for the taking and the assessment of damages and expert witness fees were all excessive and should be reduced. We find the award of the trial court for compensation is excessive and will be reduced, and that the award of damages is not recoverable, however, in all other respects the judgment is affirmed.

In 1943, Humble acquired its initial right of way across the subject property from the Burton-Sutton Oil Company for the laying of an eight inch pipe line. In 1953, plaintiff determined that it needed a larger line, and after failing to amicably agree with Burton, who was then the owner of the property, for the laying of a sixteen inch line and removal of the then existing eight inch line, acquired through appropriate legal proceedings a right of way for the laying of the now existing sixteen inch line. In this instant proceeding, Humble seeks the right to place an additional sixteen inch line parallel to and ten feet from the existing line and within the boundary of the existing fifty foot right of way. After negotiations proved unfruitful of agreement, Humble filed this action to expropriate the right to lay the subject sixteen inch pipe line.

In its petition, plaintiff alleges it is engaged in the transportation of petroleum and petroleum products as a common carrier for hire from points within the state to other points within the state; that it owns and operates a sixteen inch truck pipe line for the transportation for hire of crude petroleum from various oil fields in South Louisiana to its terminal facilities at Anchorage, West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana; that in order to construct, lay, maintain and operate said pipe line, it is necessary to cross the property owned by Burton at the place designated by Humble. Further, plaintiff alleges it is necessary to the public interest, convenience and necessity that it acquire the right to lay and construct said [727]*727additional line as above shown; that Burton has refused to amicably grant the right of way except upon the payment of compensation and damages equivalent to $75 per rod.

Burton filed certain dilatory and peremptory exceptions. No useful purpose is to be served by a detail recitation of the contents of these exceptions, and suffice it to say that the purpose and import of these exceptions are to contest the necessity of the plaintiff to construct and lay this additional sixteen inch line across defendant’s property. In these exceptions, the defendant urges that the plaintiff is seeking to take private property beyond the public interest and necessity because the plaintiff can serve its needs with its existing pipe line which now traverses the-Burton property.

The defendant makes the following assignment of errors of the trial court and its judgment:

“1. The trial court erred in permitting the Plaintiff to expropriate a right of way for a new pipeline before Plaintiff had fully utilized its existing expropriated pipeline rights over Defendant’s property, in violation of Defendant’s constitutional and statutory rights and in direct contradiction of the jurisprudence of this State.
“2. The trial court erred in failing to place restrictive conditions on the use of the rights expropriated, and to require that Plaintiff relocate its line on Defendant’s lands should its location substantially interfere with or impede use of the land for industrial purposes, all necessary for the protection of Defendant’s future use and disposition of its lands.
“3. The trial court erred in failing to recognize that Plaintiff’s proposed new line would have an adverse effect on the value of all of Defendant’s lands for use as an industrial plant site, its recognized and best use, and it erred in failing to award Defendant its severance or consequential damages of $247,000.00.
“4. The court erred in excluding relevant and material evidence bearing upon this issue in a most critical fashion.
“5. The trial court erred in failing to recognize that Defendant was entitled to be awarded its full cost and expense incurred in the employment of experts necessary for the defense of this suit.”

We will now proceed to consider these alleged and assigned errors.

The defendant does not question the right of the plaintiff to expropriate property. Plaintiff alleged that it operated existing pipe lines for the transportation or movement of crude petroleum from one point in Louisiana to another point in Louisiana for hire, however, the contention the defendant does raise by the exceptions is that plaintiff, by proper utilization of its present facility, can transport all the crude petroleum it has demand to transport, both now and in the foreseeable future, through its existing line; that by the increase of pressure to be attained by increase of its pumping stations horsepower, sufficient liquids can be pushed through the existing line to meet its customers demands. In essence, defendant contends through proper management of plaintiff’s present system there is no public interest or necessity to be served by the additional taking of defendant’s property, or the installation of the additional sixteen inch line.

LSA-R.S. 45:254 expressly grants to common carrier pipe lines, as defined by LSA-R.S. 45:251 and 45:252, the right of expropriation with authority to expropriate private property under the state expropriation laws for use in its common carrier pipe line business. Unmistakably, and it is not questioned by defendant, the plaintiff is a common carrier within the terms of the definition provided in LSA-R.S. 45:251 and 45:252.

The proof in the record clearly demonstrates to our satisfaction that the plaintiff, through its expert and technical services and trained specialists, has conducted a [728]*728study of its projected demand for crude petroleum transportation through 1975, and that its considered conclusion is that the additional loop or parallel line will be required to keep pace with demand. The only witness offered by the defendant in support of its position, Mr. J. J. Hindman, testified, in effect, that from the study he had made of the plaintiff’s business he was not in position to challenge the conclusion of the plaintiff to its need for the proposed additional sixteen inch pipe line.

The witness disqualified himself on the question of the nonfeasibility of this line by the admission that he had not conducted an adequate study to determine such a question.

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Related

Florida Gas Transmission Co. v. Dupont
264 So. 2d 708 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1972)
United Gas Pipe Line Company v. Landry
228 So. 2d 565 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1969)
Humble Pipe Line Co. v. Wm. T. Burton Industries, Inc.
221 So. 2d 526 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1969)
Humble Pipe Line Co. v. Wm. T. Burton Industries, Inc.
217 So. 2d 188 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1968)
State ex rel. Department of Highways v. Bourgeois
205 So. 2d 613 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1967)

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Bluebook (online)
205 So. 2d 724, 28 Oil & Gas Rep. 174, 1967 La. App. LEXIS 4888, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/humble-pipe-line-co-v-wm-t-burton-industries-inc-lactapp-1967.