Jones v. Rainey

168 S.W.2d 507
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 2, 1942
DocketNo. 5984
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 168 S.W.2d 507 (Jones v. Rainey) 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
Jones v. Rainey, 168 S.W.2d 507 (Tex. Ct. App. 1942).

Opinion

JOHNSON, Chief Justice.

Apellee owns a 42-acre farm in Delta County. Appellant, J. R. Jones, owns a larger tract of land adjoining appellee on the west and extending farther north than appellee’s land. An old roadway extends north and south on the division line between the two tracts. A ditch runs along the west side of the old roadway. Appellee sued appellant for damages and for injunc-tive relief for changing the natural course of the flow of surface water on his land and diverting it into said ditch, causing it to cave off and to overflow appellee’s land. On the first appeal, judgment was reversed and the cause remanded. Rainey v. Jones, Tex.Civ.App., 146 S.W.2d 794. The cause was again tried before a jury and resulted in a verdict and judgment for appellee for $150 damages which he had sustained to his land, and a mandatory injunction preventing the future diversion of such water. In response to special issues the jury found in substance:

That said ditch on the east side of said old roadway was upon land owned by ap-pellee; that by constructing certain terraces, embankments, ditches and dams on his land, and a culvert across said roadway, appellant had changed the course of the natural flow of surface water on his land and diverted it into said ditch on the east side of said roadway and onto appellee’s land, causing it to overflow and damage appellee’s land; assessing the amount of damage which had been sustained to ap-pellee’s land as the result of the acts of appellant at $150.

That terraces constructed by appellee on his own land caused water to flow into said ditch which had been a proximate cause of the ditch overflowing and injuring his land; that same was not the sole proximate cause of the ditch overflowing and injury to his land; and that same would not in the future continue to constitute a proximate cause of injury to appellee’s land.

That a certain levee on the Smith-Viles tract of land located south of appellant’s land had diverted water onto and over the south end of appellee’s ■ land; that same was not a new, independent cause, nor the sole proximate cause of appellee’s damage.

That the size or condition of a culvert across the public road running east and west at or near the south end of appellee’s land has caused water to be backed or diverted upon a portion of appellee’s land; that same was not a new, independent cause, nor the sole proximate cause of ap-pellee’s damage.

That the damage to appellee’s land will continue to occur in the future if appellant’s terraces and embankments are maintained in their present state.

In connection with the issue inquiring as to the amount of damage caused to ap-pellee’s land by the acts of appellant, the court instructed the jury as follows: “If you have found in answer to questions submitted -to you that the plaintiff, R. L. Rain-ey, proximately caused damage to his land by terraces built by himself or by obstructions placed in the ditch in question, but if you further find that said acts of the plaintiff, if any, did not cause all the damage to his land, then in fixing the amount of damage done his land you will not include whatever amount of damage you believe was done to his land by his own terraces or obstructions, if any, placed in the ditch. And, if you have found that the water, if any, that was diverted on to the plaintiff’s land by the levee on the Smith-Viles tract of land or the road condition as asked about, either or both caused water to flow onto the plaintiff’s land which damaged it but did not create the entire damage, then in fixing the amount of damage to plaintiff’s land you will exclude from your consideration any damage that you believe was caused to the land by the water diverted from the Smith-Viles land or from the public road and its condition, and make your finding of damage be the damage that you believe was proximately caused by water diverted from the Defendant, J. R. Jones’ land as asked above in the questions relating thereto.”

Points 1, 2 and 3 complain of the action of the trial court in refusing to submit to the jury appellant’s requested special [509]*509issues Nos. 36, 37 and 38, inquiring as to what proportionate part of the damages sustained to appellee’s land was caused: (1) By the acts of appellee in constructing the terraces on his own land; (2) by the County in constructing the culvert across the public road South of appellee’s land; and (3) by the levee on the Smith-Viles land. The testimony tended to show that appellee’s land had been damaged by overflow of diverted surface water from four different sources or parties, acting independently of each other, namely, (1) the acts of appellee in the construction of his terraces; (2) the acts of appellant in the construction of his terraces, dams and ditches; (3) the acts of the owner of the Smith-Viles land in construction of levees and dams thereon; and (4) the acts of the County in construction of a culvert across the public road to the south of appellee’s land. In such circumstances the appellant is liable for that portion only of the damages caused by his acts. See authorities cited in Rainey v. Jones, Tex.Civ.App., 146 S.W.2d 794. In submitting the matter, the court simply asked the jury to find the amount of damage which had been caused by the acts of appellant, and in connection therewith instructed the jury that in arriving at the amount of damages caused by the acts of appellant not to include damages caused by the acts of either of the other three named parties or sources. Was the method employed by the court in submitting the issue erroneous, and so erroneous as to require a reversal of the case? The same result could have been reached by asking the jury to find the total amount of damage sustained by appellee from all the four named sources, and to find the proportionate part or percentage of the whole caused by each of said four sources or each of any three of them, in separate issues; and upon the answers to such issues the court could have by calculation arrived at the amount of damage caused by the acts of appellant. It is the last-named method which appellant contends should have been employed by the court. It will be observed that no issue was submitted and none requested asking the jury to find the total amount of damages sustained by appellee from all the four named sources. In the absence of such a finding, answers of the jury to the three questions requested by appellant would not have formed a sufficient basis for the court to have calculated the amount of damage caused by the acts of appellant. It will be further noted that in the state of the record in this case, the damage caused by any one or all of the three named sources or agencies other than appellant do not constitute a defense to or relieve appellant from liability for the damage caused by his acts. Therefore, the question for our determination is whether or not the method employed by the court is such as may reasonably be calculated to work an injury to appellant. Rule 434, Texas Civil Procedure. In our opinion, the question should be answered in the negative. As against the criticism (raised by Point 6) that same was a general charge, we think that the above-quoted explanatory instructions given by the court in connection with the issue on the amount of damage caused by the acts of appellant may reasonably be construed as being permissible under Rule 277, Texas Civil Procedure, reading in part as follows:

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168 S.W.2d 507, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jones-v-rainey-texapp-1942.