Mayflower Investment Company v. Stephens

345 S.W.2d 786, 1960 Tex. App. LEXIS 1925
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedDecember 30, 1960
Docket15746
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 345 S.W.2d 786 (Mayflower Investment Company v. Stephens) 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
Mayflower Investment Company v. Stephens, 345 S.W.2d 786, 1960 Tex. App. LEXIS 1925 (Tex. Ct. App. 1960).

Opinions

THOMAS, Justice.

Appellee Russell S. Stephens, as plaintiff below, brought suit against Mayflower Investment Company, a corporation, and its President and Vice-President, in damages for trespasses and other wrongs affecting appellee’s land. Appellee alleged that Mayflower was the owner of the adjoining land to the East, and in the process of improving its tract as a residential addition to the City of Irving, the corporation and its officers constructed a drainage ditch to divert the waters from a natural creek which meandered through Mayflower’s land, and in doing so failed to observe the common boundary line, but broke appellee’s close (that visible or invisible fence by which the common law deems every man’s land to be inclosed) along the entire length of appellee’s East boundary line without his consent. Based upon a jury’s answers to special issues submitted, judgment was rendered for appellee against the corporation and the individual defendants, jointly and severally, for $10,000 with $4,350 accrued interest, as actual damages, and for $12,750 against the corporation as exemplary damages. The judgment for actual damages with accrued interest is proper, but there is no evidence to sustain the judgment for exemplary damages.

Appellee owns a rectangular tract of about 8 acres upon which he and his family live. Plis South line fronts 328.7 feet on Kit Lone Star Road; his East boundary line of 988.9 feet in length coincides to that dis[788]*788tance with Mayflower’s West boundary line. Mayflower owned a forty-acre tract lying immediately East of appellee’s tract, which also fronts on the North side of Kit Lone Star Road.

The forty-acre tract, in its natural state, had a large creek situated upon it which entered the forty-acre tract North of ap-pellee’s property; a bight in the creek turned Westward, then Southerly and crossed appellee’s North line; then it circled Eastward across the Northeast portion of ap-pellee’s tract, re-entered the Mayflower tract, and meandered in a Southeasterly direction to about the center of the forty-acre tract; thence the creek turned Southwesterly to the Southeast corner of appel-lee’s property, whence it turned Eastward again.

A branch of the large creek flowed across appellee’s property in its natural state, entering near his Northwest corner. The branch meandered across appellee’s land and emptied into the large creek near the Southeast corner of appellee’s land. This small branch or creek furnished natural drainage to ap-pellee’s tract as well as to some of the land lying to the North and West thereof.

In order to obtain the maximum return from the subdivision of its property for residential purposes, Mayflower decided to completely eliminate the old creek by filling its channel and diverting the drainage flow of the old creek. To accomplish that result a large drainage ditch was cut running almost the entire length of the common boundary between appellee’s and appellants’ tracts. The bight in the creek which circled across the Northeast portion of appellee’s land was by-passed. The bottom of the ditch, as built, was from S to 13 feet in width; its depth varied from 6 to 12 feet. The Eastern bank on the Mayflower side was constructed with a slope, but the Western side next to appellee’s land was practically a vertical cut without any artificial support. The old creek bed was approximately 400 feet East of appellee’s residence, whereas the ditch is only 83 to 84 feet from his residence. The new ditch near the South end of the two tracts turned almost 90 degrees Eastward. Along the Western side - of the ditch near the South end and around the curve made by the turn, a concrete apron and retaining wall was constructed to turn the flow of water and prevent washing.

Mayflower employed Mr. Lynn Brown, a licensed surveyor and engineer, a life-long resident of Irving, and at the time of trial Mayor of that City, to plan and direct the improvement of its property as additions to the City of Irving. Incident to this employment Mr. Brown planned the required changes in drainage and grading and designed and located the ditch in controversy for the independent contractor which did the actual construction work. Mr. Brown supervised the construction of the ditch until the excavation was completed. The old creek bed was filled and the area cleared and leveled. A street was run from Kit Lone Star Road Northward through the middle of the area where the old creek had been, and it was subdivided into blocks A and B of Mayflower Addition No. 3, and into 32 lots. Across the rear of each lot, abutting the common boundary, a 30-foot utility and drainage easement purporting to include the ditch, was reserved. Mayflower built residences on each lot and at the time of the trial all of the lots had been sold to persons who were not parties to this suit.

In answer to some 29 special issues the jury found: that Mayflower committed one or more trespasses, as that term was properly defined, on appellee’s land which resulted in damages; that in digging the ditch, lateral support, as that term was properly defined was withdrawn from the Eastern side of appellee’s property; that a part of appellee’s land has sloughed ofif or caved into the drainage ditch; that Mayflower caused large quantities of dirt to be dumped into the old creek bed on ap-pellee’s property without his consent; that it diverted or caused to be diverted the ordinary flow of water of the old creek [789]*789which came upon appellee’s land which resulted in damages thereto; that it caused a levee or dam to be constructed on appellee’s property along the Western bank of the drainage ditch without his consent; that a part of a concrete apron near the South end of the drainage ditch is upon appellee’s land erected without his consent; that Mayflower “stopped up” or caused to be stopped up the natural outlet of a small creek or branch which emptied into the large creek near the Southeast corner of appellee’s land without his consent; that the reasonable cash market value of appellee’s property immediately before the digging of the ditch was $25,000 and such value after the completion of the drainage ditch was $15,000; that the acts and conduct of Mayflower in the location and construction of the drainage ditch were wilful or malicious and done without regard to the consequences they would have upon ap-pellee’s land; that appellee is entitled to exemplary damages, as properly defined, against Mayflower in the sum of $12,750; that the President and Vice-President of Mayflower knew that the drainage ditch in question was to be dug at or near the location where it is situated, and consented to the digging thereof at the location, approved the location and size of the drainage ditch and knew or should have known the effect such excavation for the ditch would have upon appellee’s land; that when appellee first contacted the Vice-President of Mayflower he did not know the correct location of his East boundary line and by his acts and conduct did not cause Mayflower to believe appellee had no objection to the construction of the -ditch, the filling in of the old ditch, or .creek, and the improvements.

Although appellants urge 21 points of ¡appeal, the points fall into five main contentions regarding: (1) the refusal of ■the court to submit any issues as to the disputed location of the boundary line on ■the ground; (2) the manner in which the .court submitted the causation and damage issues; (3) the submission of the exemplary damages issues; (4) the submission of issues regarding individual responsibility of the officers of Mayflower; and (5) the adding of interest in the judgment to the actual damages.

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Bluebook (online)
345 S.W.2d 786, 1960 Tex. App. LEXIS 1925, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mayflower-investment-company-v-stephens-texapp-1960.