State ex rel. State Highway Commission v. Allison

296 S.W.2d 104, 1956 Mo. LEXIS 713
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedNovember 12, 1956
DocketNo. 45457
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 296 S.W.2d 104 (State ex rel. State Highway Commission v. Allison) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State ex rel. State Highway Commission v. Allison, 296 S.W.2d 104, 1956 Mo. LEXIS 713 (Mo. 1956).

Opinion

DALTON, Judge.

’ This is an original proceeding in mandamus. Relator seeks the mandate of this court to require Flonorable Emery W. Allison, Judge of the 39th Judicial Circuit of Missouri to exercise jurisdiction- and proceed with a certain condemnation action, entitled State ex rel. State Highway Commission of Missouri, plaintiff, v. Philip R. Lynch, et al., defendants, which said cause is pending before respondent in the Circuit Court of Pulaski County and, particularly, to require respondent to proceed with the cause and disregard a certain stay order entered by him staying all proceedings in said cause until the disposition by this court of a particular appeal by certain parties as hereinafter stated. Issuance and service of our alternative writ was waived and respondent has filed his return to our alternative writ and his answer to relator’s petition. Relator has since moved for judgment on the pleadings and the cause has been briefed, argued and submitted.

The essential and decisive facts are not in dispute. This clearly appears from respondent’s return, answer and exhibits and the admissions in his brief. Relator is a corporation created by special law with authority to sue and be sued in its official name. See Laws of Missouri, First Extra [106]*106Session 1921, pp. 131-167, and Secs. 226.-020 and 226.100 RSMo 1949, V.A.M.S. We take judicial notice of the constitutional and statutory provisions by which the relator is vested with specified powers and duties. Secs. 29 and 30, Art. IV, Const, of Mo. 1945, V.A.M.S. and Chapters 226 and 227 RSMo 1949, V.A.M.S.

On July 21, 1955, relator filed its petition in the Circuit Court of Pulaski County, before the respondent, by which petition relator sought to acquire by condemnation proceedings gn easement for right of way over specifically described real estate for the improvement of a highway, now known as U. S. Route 66, and to acquire certain further easements and rights, as in the petition particularly described. As to certain named defendants, the relator sought only to acquire all abutters’ rights of direct access between the highway known as U. S. Highway 66 and the abutting lands of the named defendants. It is admitted that process had been issued and served upon all of the parties named as defendants in this condemnation petition. Among the properties sought to be acquired was an easement for right of way across a particularly described tract of real estate 5 feet by 80 feet, amounting to some 0.01 acres in area, alleged to be owned by defendants Philip R. Lynch and Leati A. Lynch.

Thereafter, before any hearing upon said petition or the appointment of commissioners, relator filed a written dismissal of its cause of action against defendants Philip R. Lynch and Leati A. Lynch and said defendants appeared and objected to the dismissal on the ground that said defendants were “necessary statutory defendants to said action”, since they were the .owners of property abutting on Highway 66 and because relator had filed a detailed plan, maps and a petition showing the plan for the proposed improvement of the highway along and adjacent to their property. They alleged that, unless they -were continued as parties defendant in said condemnation proceeding, they would have no statutory right of action against the State Agency filing said condemnation proceeding because of their consequential damages which might result from the fact that relator proposed to construct an outer roadway on its previously acquired right of way abutting defendants’ property and between defendants’ property and a proposed throughway. They alleged that the entryways and exits between the outer roadway and the proposed hard-surface throughway would be on either side of their property and would deny direct access from their property to the throughway to the damage of their abutting property.

A hearing was had as to relator’s dismissal of the action as to these defendants. Respondent’s return and answer sets out evidence heard by the court, in part, as follows:

“Q. After the outer roadway is constructed, will it be possible at all for Mr. Lynch to have access directly from his property onto the throughway? A. Not to come straight out, at right angles to the highway from his property. He would come onto the outer roadway and then would have to go to one or the other of the entrance points that we just mentioned, Stations 980 or 996. * * *
“Q. That is the plan approved by your Chief Engineer, is it not? A. Yes, sir.
“Q. And it's on that plan that you have, this action has been filed, is it not? A. I believe so; yes. * * *
“Q. And that there will be no right of access over any part of an entrance which lies between said outer roadway and the throughway, do you propose to do that? A. Yes; there will be no entrance between the outer roadway and the throughway except at this Station 980 or 996. There will be crossovers there from the outer roadway to the throughway.”

[107]*107Thereafter, respondent entered the following order: “Plaintiff’s motion to dismiss as to defendants Philip R. Lynch and Leati A. Lynch sustained and cause dismissed as to them.” After motion for a new trial had been filed and overruled, the said defendants took an appeal to this court from the said order and judgment of dismissal.

Prior to the Lynch appeal,. numerous owners of property abutting upon relator’s previously acquired right of way, not parties defendant in relator’s condemnation proceeding, filed motions to intervene as defendants and as additional necessary parties therein on the theory, among others, that relator’s proposed plan of improvement and the construction of the outer drives or service roads and the control of traffic entering the throughway or main traffic-way would result in a taking without compensation of their alleged rights to have direct access to, from, and across such right of way from their abutting properties to the- throughway of the proposed highway. These claimed rights are not to be confused with the right of ingress and egress to and from their respective properties to the- adjacent outer drives or service roads which relator proposes to construct upon its previously acquired right of way.

Pending a determination of the several motions to intervene and to be made parties defendant in the condemnation action, certain defendants and certain persons who had filed motions or petitions to intervene filed motions in the condemnation action to stay all further proceedings in that action pending the disposition by this court of the appeal taken by Philip R. Lynch and Leati A. Lynch from the order and judgment of the Circuit Court sustaining relator’s dismissal of its cause of action as to said defendants.

A hearing was had before respondent upon these motions to stay proceedings. Respondent has favored us with a partial transcript of these proceedings, which transcript shows respondent’s position and the arguments presented, and it appears that the motions to stay were vigorously contested by relator on the ground that the motions were “nothing but a delaying action all the way through,” and that sustaining the motions would result in unreasonable delay of an important public improvement.

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Bluebook (online)
296 S.W.2d 104, 1956 Mo. LEXIS 713, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-state-highway-commission-v-allison-mo-1956.