Rosborough v. Chelan County, Wash.

53 F.2d 198, 1931 U.S. App. LEXIS 2645
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedOctober 26, 1931
DocketNos. 6429, 6430
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 53 F.2d 198 (Rosborough v. Chelan County, Wash.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rosborough v. Chelan County, Wash., 53 F.2d 198, 1931 U.S. App. LEXIS 2645 (9th Cir. 1931).

Opinion

WILBUR, Circuit Judge.

The above-entitled appeals were taken separately and on separate transcripts, but, by agreement of counsel, were briefed and argued together. With exception of the description of tho land, tho points involved are practically identical, and we will, therefore, deal with the two eases in a single opinion.

The proceedings were in eminent domain, instituted by Chelan county, Wash., in the superior court of that county, and removed to the United States District Court upon the application of appellants, who are residents of the city of Philadelphia, Pa. In the petition for removal, tho petitioners allege that they have appeared specially solely for the purpose of removal. Upon the removal of the case to the United States District Court for the Eastern district of Washington, appellants made a motion to make more definite and certain the allegations of the complaint, and also demurred to the complaint, but in both demurrer and motion the appellants reserved and retained their special appearance and their right to question the jurisdiction of the court. It is claimed by tho appellee that under these circumstances there was a general appearance. This point, however, is not well taken. The appearance for Hie purpose of removal does not constitute a general appearance. Cain v. Commercial Pub. Co., 2.32 U. S. 124, 34 S. Ct. 284, 58 L. Ed. 534. The objection of counsel to the jurisdiction of the court having been overruled, tho filing of the demurrer did not waive its special appearance. York County Sav. Bank v. Abbot (C. C.) 139 P. 988.

The appellee relies upon the provisions of Rule 22 of the District Court to convert the special appearance of appellants into a general appearance, but this rule, in so far as it makes such provision, has been declared by the Supreme Court to be unconstitutional. Davidson Bros. Marble Co. v. U. S. ex rel. Gibson, 213 U. S. 10, 29 S. Ct. 324, 53 L. Ed. 675.

The contention of the appellants that the superior court of Chelan county (and, on removal, the United States District Court for the Eastern district of Washington) did not have jurisdiction is based upon the alleged insufficiency of tho published notice to give jurisdiction to the court over the nonresident appellants. The notice was published under and in pursuance of the provisions of section 922 of tho Remington Comp. Slat, of the state of Washington. The date of hearing was the 30th day of January, 1929, and the date of the first publication was January 7th; the intervening period being 23 days. The notice was published on the 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th. Appellants contend that under the statute in question there would have to be a publication for. 2 full weeks, namely, beginning January 7th and ending January 21st in order to constitute. 2 weeks’ notice upon a nonresident, and that therefore the appellants were entitled to have 10 days, that is, to January 31st, in which to appear. The difficulty with this contention is that the question has been decided otherwise by the Supreme Court of the state of Washington (State ex rel. Woodruff v. Superior Court, 145 Wash. 129, 259 P. 379, 381) in which it was held that the 2 weeks dated from the first day of publication, consequently, that if 2 weeks intervened between the first publication and the hearing and the notice'had been published once a week for 2 successive weeks, the statute had been complied with. The Supreme Court of the state of Washington, observing that “the real question here is that of reasonable notice to a nonresident and opportunity to'be beard,” also held that, where the return day was fixed for October 11, 1926, and notice of the hearing was published on September 23, 1930, and October 7th, “three weekly publications with. 18 days between the date of the first publication and the return day,” the notice to a nonresident was ample to constitute due process of law; that the notice to the nonresident ga ve a reasonable opportunity to bo hoard. The reía-. tor in that case, who is one of the appellants in this case, appealed to the Supreme Court of the United Stales, and that court held that tlie time allowed in that case for appearance was reasonable, and that the statute of Washington, as construed by the Supreme Court, was not violative of the due process clause of the United States. Wick v. Chelan Electric Co., 280 U. S. 108, 50 S. Ct. 41, 74 L. Ed. 212. These decisions are controlling in this action. Appellants do not concede this, but contend that tho decisions of both the state Supreme Court and the United States Supreme Court are erroneous, for the reason that they have not given proper consideration to the provision in said section 922 requiring 10 days’ notice. The contention of the appellants is that they are entitled to 10 days in which to appear after the expiration of the 2 weeks’ notice. It is apparent that this matter was not overlooked in the opinions quoted. The court was evidently of the opinion that the 10-day provision of the statute did not relate to nonresidents who were to be [200]*200notified in an entirely different manner than residents. However that may he, we are hound by the decisions of the Supreme Court of the state of Washington as to the proper interpretation of the statute. It follows that the United States District Court had jurisdiction of the.subject-matter and of the parties.

After the denial of appellants’ motion above mentioned and the overruling of their demurrers, they did not further appear in the action. Their attorney died, but they were notified by mail of his death, and they were also notified by mail.of the time of the hearing for the determination of the question of public necessity and convenience, and later were notified by mail of the hearing of the matter before a jury for the fixing of the amount of damages to be awarded to them for the taking of the land in question. The point is made that the notices served by mail upon the appellants of the hearings above mentioned did not give sufficient opportunity to prepare for such hearings and to appear. In view of the fact that there is no statute requiring notice to a defaulting defendant 'of either of the above-mentioned hearings, the point is without merit. They did, however, in fact receive notices of the hearings in time at least to have applied to the court for a continuance, notice of hearing on June 5, 1930, upon the order of public necessity and convenience, and notice of setting the cause for trial on November 20, 1930, having been re..ceived by the respondents on May 31, 1930, and November 3, 1930, respectively; Apparently it was the intention of appellants to stand on their objection to the jurisdiction of the court; although on November 25, 1929, in deciding the case of Wick v. Chelan Electric Co., supra, our Supreme Court had accepted as binding upon it, and not repugnant to the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, the state court’s construction of section 922 as providing in effect that the first publication of notice of presentation of petition in condemnation constituted service and that the intervening 18 days was sufficient. Here, as previously pointed out, the intervening period was 23 days.

Appellants, having failed to appear at either trial, are not in a position to take advantage of the insufficiencies and 'defects in the evidence adduced thereon. They made no motion for a directed verdict, and no motion for a determination in their favor on the question of public necessity.

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Bluebook (online)
53 F.2d 198, 1931 U.S. App. LEXIS 2645, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rosborough-v-chelan-county-wash-ca9-1931.