Lloyd C. Meyer v. Xcel Energy Services Inc.

CourtCourt of Appeals of Wisconsin
DecidedApril 27, 2023
Docket2022AP000900
StatusUnpublished

This text of Lloyd C. Meyer v. Xcel Energy Services Inc. (Lloyd C. Meyer v. Xcel Energy Services Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Wisconsin primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lloyd C. Meyer v. Xcel Energy Services Inc., (Wis. Ct. App. 2023).

Opinion

COURT OF APPEALS DECISION NOTICE DATED AND FILED This opinion is subject to further editing. If published, the official version will appear in the bound volume of the Official Reports. April 27, 2023 A party may file with the Supreme Court a Sheila T. Reiff petition to review an adverse decision by the Clerk of Court of Appeals Court of Appeals. See WIS. STAT. § 808.10 and RULE 809.62.

Appeal No. 2022AP900 Cir. Ct. No. 2019CV110

STATE OF WISCONSIN IN COURT OF APPEALS DISTRICT IV

LLOYD C. MEYER,

PLAINTIFF-APPELLANT,

V.

XCEL ENERGY SERVICES INC., NEILLSVILLE IMPROVEMENT CORPORATION AND NORTHERN STATES POWER COMPANY,

DEFENDANTS-RESPONDENTS.

APPEAL from an order of the circuit court for Clark County: RICHARD A. RADCLIFFE, Judge. Affirmed in part; reversed in part and remanded.

Before Kloppenburg, Fitzpatrick, and Nashold, JJ.

Per curiam opinions may not be cited in any court of this state as precedent

or authority, except for the limited purposes specified in WIS. STAT. RULE 809.23(3). No. 2022AP900

¶1 PER CURIAM. Lloyd C. Meyer appeals an order of the Clark County Circuit Court granting summary judgment to Northern States Power Company (“NSP”) on Meyer’s adverse possession and prescriptive easement claims. Meyer argues that the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment as to both claims. For the following reasons, we affirm the circuit court’s order with respect to Meyer’s adverse possession claim, but we reverse the circuit court’s order with respect to Meyer’s prescriptive easement claim.

BACKGROUND

¶2 There is no dispute as to the following material facts.

¶3 NSP is a public utility that transmits and distributes electricity in Wisconsin. NSP owns a 100-foot-wide strip of land (the “NSP Property”) that abuts property owned by Meyer. The NSP Property is a section of a longer strip of land owned by NSP that spans over twelve miles between Neillsville, Wisconsin and Chili, Wisconsin. In 1997, NSP constructed a transmission line from Neillsville to Chili, and a portion of that transmission line was built on what is now the NSP Property. Since that time, NSP has maintained on, or over, the NSP Property eleven power poles, a transmission line, and accompanying transmission infrastructure that hangs from those poles. NSP has not used the NSP Property for any other purpose since it constructed the transmission line.

¶4 Meyer owns the land on both sides of the NSP Property. No later than 1987, Meyer built a pond on his property that is also partially located on the NSP Property. Meyer also performed the following activities on the NSP Property: installed a buried electrical line for a pond aerator; constructed a steel windmill; farmed and harvested crops; lowered the grade of the NSP Property; developed and maintained three roads across the NSP Property; pastured livestock;

2 No. 2022AP900

mowed and cut brush; and stored on the NSP Property firewood, logs, steel, lumber, and farm machinery.

¶5 In 2019, Meyer filed in the circuit court a complaint against NSP alleging that he adversely possessed the entire NSP Property or, in the alternative, that he is entitled to a prescriptive easement to continue using the NSP Property.1 NSP moved for summary judgment on Meyer’s claims, arguing that: (1) Meyer’s adverse possession claim fails because his occupation of the NSP Property was not “exclusive of any other right”; and (2) Meyer’s prescriptive easement claim fails because his use of the NSP Property was not “hostile and inconsistent” with NSP’s use of the NSP Property. The circuit court granted NSP’s motion.2 Meyer appeals the court’s order.

¶6 Additional material facts are mentioned in the following discussion.

DISCUSSION

¶7 On appeal, Meyer argues that the circuit court erroneously granted summary judgment on his adverse possession and prescriptive easement claims.

1 Meyer also sued Xcel Energy Services Inc. and Neillsville Improvement Corporation. Meyer does not appeal the circuit court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of those parties, and we do not further address those parties in this opinion. 2 On its own initiative, the circuit court also granted partial summary judgment to Meyer. See WIS. STAT. § 802.08(6) (2021-22). More specifically, the circuit court held that Meyer is entitled to a prescriptive easement for the pond on the NSP Property and ten feet around the pond “for continued recreational use.” On appeal, NSP does not object to this grant of partial summary judgment to Meyer.

All references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to the 2021-22 version unless otherwise noted.

3 No. 2022AP900

We begin by setting forth the governing principles and our standard of review regarding motions for summary judgment.

I. Governing Principles and Standard of Review for Summary Judgment.

¶8 We review a circuit court’s decision granting or denying summary judgment independently, but we apply the same methodology as the circuit court. Mrozek v. Intra Fin. Corp., 2005 WI 73, ¶14, 281 Wis. 2d 448, 699 N.W.2d 54. On summary judgment, the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law “if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” WIS. STAT. § 802.08(2); Bank of N.Y. Mellon v. Klomsten, 2018 WI App 25, ¶31, 381 Wis. 2d 218, 911 N.W.2d 364.

¶9 In reviewing this motion for summary judgment, we apply the following methodology.3 We consider the moving party’s affidavits or other proof to determine whether the moving party has made a prima facie case for summary judgment under WIS. STAT. § 802.08(2). L.L.N. v. Clauder, 209 Wis. 2d 674, ¶14, 563 N.W.2d 434 (1997). “If the defendant is the moving party, the defendant must establish a defense that defeats the plaintiff’s cause of action.” Id., ¶14 n.6. If the moving party has made a prima facie case for summary judgment, “the opposing party must show, by affidavit or other proof, the existence of disputed material

3 The initial step in summary judgment methodology is to examine the pleadings to “determine whether a claim for relief is stated.” L.L.N. v. Clauder, 209 Wis. 2d 674, ¶13, 563 N.W.2d 434 (1997). Here, the parties do not dispute that this step has been satisfied.

4 No. 2022AP900

facts or undisputed material facts from which reasonable alternative inferences may be drawn that are sufficient to entitle the opposing party to a trial.” Id., ¶14.

¶10 When determining whether there is a “genuine issue of material fact,” the affidavits and other proof submitted by the parties “are viewed in a light most favorable to the opposing party.” Id., ¶15. Additionally, in deciding whether there are factual disputes, “the circuit court and the reviewing court consider whether more than one reasonable inference may be drawn from undisputed facts; if so, the competing reasonable inferences may constitute genuine issues of material fact.” H & R Block E. Enters., Inc. v. Swenson, 2008 WI App 3, ¶11, 307 Wis. 2d 390, 745 N.W.2d 421 (2007).

¶11 We next consider in turn the parties’ arguments regarding adverse possession and a prescriptive easement concerning the NSP Property.

II. Adverse Possession.

A. Governing Principles of Adverse Possession.

¶12 “Adverse possession is a legal action that enables a party to obtain valid title of another’s property by operation of law.” Wilcox v. Estate of Hines, 2014 WI 60, ¶19, 355 Wis. 2d 1, 849 N.W.2d 280. WISCONSIN STAT.

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

Related

Mrozek v. Intra Financial Corp.
2005 WI 73 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 2005)
Ludke v. Egan
274 N.W.2d 641 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1979)
Jacque v. Steenberg Homes, Inc.
563 N.W.2d 154 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1997)
L.L.N. v. Clauder
563 N.W.2d 434 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1997)
H&R Block Eastern Enterprises, Inc. v. Swenson
2008 WI App 3 (Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2007)
Shellow v. Hagen
101 N.W.2d 694 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1960)
Carlson v. Craig
60 N.W.2d 395 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1953)
Cuskey v. McShane
87 N.W.2d 497 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1958)
Widell v. Tollefson
462 N.W.2d 910 (Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 1990)
Richard S. Wilcox v. Estate of Ralph Hines
2014 WI 60 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 2014)
Christenson v. Wikan
35 N.W.2d 329 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1948)
Illinois Steel Co. v. Tamms
141 N.W. 1011 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1913)
Bassett v. Soelle
202 N.W. 164 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1925)
Shepard v. Gilbert
249 N.W. 54 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1933)
Barrows v. American Family Insurance
2014 WI App 11 (Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2013)
Kruckenberg v. Krukar
2017 WI App 70 (Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2017)
Bank of N.Y. Mellon v. Klomsten
2018 WI App 25 (Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, 2018)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
Lloyd C. Meyer v. Xcel Energy Services Inc., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lloyd-c-meyer-v-xcel-energy-services-inc-wisctapp-2023.