Lower Colorado River Authority v. Hughes

122 S.W.2d 222
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 9, 1938
DocketNo. 8743.
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 122 S.W.2d 222 (Lower Colorado River Authority v. Hughes) 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
Lower Colorado River Authority v. Hughes, 122 S.W.2d 222 (Tex. Ct. App. 1938).

Opinion

BLAIR, Justice.

This appeal arose out of a condemnation proceeding instituted by appellant, Lower Colorado River Authority, to condemn 320 acres of land belonging to appellees, Fritz' Hughes and wife, and others alleged to have an interest therein, for use in the construction of Marshall Ford dam. The commissioners appointed awarded appellees $10,000 as their damages. Both appellant and appellees appealed from said award, appellant claiming that it was excessive and appellees claiming that it was insufficient. By a written statement filed at the beginning of the trial, appellees admitted the authority of appellant to condemn the 320 acres of land and to take possession thereof, and stated that the only question presented was the amount of damages suffered by appellees for the taking of the 320 acres and damages done to the land of ap-pellees adjoining the 320 acres condemned; and appellees, with permission of the court, assumed the burden of proof as to the amortnt of damages suffered. The jury found that the actual cash value of the 320 acres taken was $11,406, and that the damages to the adjoining 60 acres of appellees was $240. Judgment was accordingly rendered for appellees for $11,646, and interest; hence this appeal.

Appellant contends that the jury finding of value as to the 320 acres taken is without support in the evidence; and in the alternative, that it is against the great weight and preponderance of the undisputed evidence. In this connection appellant also contends that the court erred in admitting in evidence, over objection, or refusing to strike out the testimony of several witnesses of appellees as to the market value of the 320 acres, because the witnesses were shown not to be qualified to testify and did not show that they possessed sufficient knowledge of the market value of the land to give an opinion thereof. Neither of these contentions is sustained.

A detailed statement of the asserted grounds of disqualification of the several witnesses to give their opinions as to the market value of the 320 acres of land need not be made. The court did not submit the question of market value to the jury, but the question of the “actual cash value” of the land. No complaint is here made of the failure to submit the question of market value, and in consequence the question of whether the evidence of appellant sufficiently showed that the property had a market value is not material. Ap-pellees alleged and tried their case on the theory that the property had no market value, but that it had an actual, reasonable or intrinsic value; and the rule is settled that when property taken or destroyed has no market value, its actual, reasonable or intrinsic value may be shown. Gulf, C. & S. F. Ry. Co. v. Jackson, 99 Tex. 343, 89 S.W. 968; Taylor County v. Olds, Tex.Civ.App., 67 S.W.2d 1102, 1103; Ft. Worth & Denver City Ry. Co. v. Amason, Tex.Civ.App., 239 S.W. 359; Ft. Worth & Denver N. Ry. Co. v. Sugg, Tex.Civ.App., 68 S.W.2d 570; and 19 Tex.Jur. 200-204, and cases there cited. Appellees’ witnesses showed that there had been no sale of river front property similar to that of appel-lees, either above or below it for several miles, within five years of the time in question, except one place had been partitioned, which is in nature a forced sale, and possibly another had been sold but no information was given as to it; that neither the property in question nor any similar property in the vicinity of it was for sale; and that most of the similar properties had been owned by the present occupants for a period of from 20 to 50 years. The court properly defined “actual cash value” by instructing the jury .to arrive at the “actual cash value” of the 320 acres of land by taking into consideration all of the uses made of it, and all uses to which it might be adapted, except as a dam site; and that “actual cash value” meant the price the land should sell for in cash if offered for sale by one not obliged to sell and purchased by one not under necessity of doing so. Proof of actual, reasonable or intrinsic value of the property may be shown by the value of its uses, its particular fitness for such uses, and its adaptability for any other uses or purposes, and the reasonable value thereof; and, generally, a witness may give his opinion of the value of such property based on such uses and the value thereof, when it has been shown that he has some knowl *224 edge of such uses beyond that of the jurors. Grayce Oil Co. v. Peterson, 128 Tex. 550, 98 S.W.2d 781; 19 Tex.Jur. 206-208, and cases there cited. Appellees’ witnesses fully qualified under this rule' as will be later shown; and if any did not so qualify, then the admission of such opinion is harmless under the rule that where value is fully established by opinions of qualified witnesses, any error arising out of the receipt-of opinions of unqualified witnesses is harmless and will not occasion a reversal. Grayce Case, supra. Such is the situation in the instant case.

The evidence sustaining the jury finding that the actual cash value of the 320 acres of land was $11,406, is as follows:

The entire 320 acres of land was taken for use of dam project. The 97 acres immediately abutting on the Colorado river was rich, deep alluvial soil, built up through the years by the overflow of the river until it had a depth of some sixty feet, was in a good state of cultivation, having no noxious grasses or weeds, and was easily accessible to the river for irrigation. The 97 acres had more than 300 growing pecan trees, some bearing and others ready to be budded; .and although an unprecedented flood in 1935 destroyed many of the pecan trees, the aforementioned remained and were well spaced over the 97 acres, which was unusually fine pecan land, and was productive of corn and all other agricultural products; and their annual value, generally, per acre was shown. Witnesses who had been engaged in pecan culture and industry for a long number of years and who inspected the land testified that the 97 acres of land was worth from $200 to $500 per acre as pecan land at the time it was condemned by appellant. The several witnesses of whose disqualification to testify as to the market value of the land is complained of, and several others whose similar testimony was not objected to, most of whom had lived in the vicinity of the land in question from 20 to 50 years and knew the land, and some of whom owned the adjoining and nearby river lands, testified that the 97 acres of ap-pellees was the best bottom land in the vicinity, because rich, deep alluvial soil had been built up through the years by the •overflow of the river until it was above ■ordinary flood stage; that they knew the character of the 97 acres of land in cultivation, its productivity of all agricultural ■crops, and, generally, their value per acre, and of its particular fitness for pecans, some of them being experienced in raising pecans on their nearby lands; and that based upon their knowledge of the uses testified to, they estimated the value of the 97 acres to be from $150 to $300 per acre. Several of appellees’ witnesses testified that they knew the kind and character of the remainder of the 320 acres of land; that it had considerable merchantable cedar timber on it, was good grazing land for sheep, goats, cattle and other live stock; had an abundant supply of water in the river for.

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Bluebook (online)
122 S.W.2d 222, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lower-colorado-river-authority-v-hughes-texapp-1938.