State v. Sallak

244 A.2d 60, 5 Conn. Cir. Ct. 107, 1968 Conn. Cir. LEXIS 173
Connecticut Appellate Court·Decided January 26, 1968·No. File No. CV 9-6510-2858·Published·Cited by 4 cases

Opinion

Kosicki, J.

The state, acting through its highway commissioner, brought suit for the value of the use and occupancy of property which had previously been taken for highway purposes. The case was tried on a stipulation of facts which presents the [108] following situation. On September 19, 1963, the state highway commissioner, pursuant to his authority under § 13a-73 of the General Statutes, filed a notice of taking of the defendant’s land for highway purposes. The filing was with the clerk of the Superior Court for Middlesex County, in which the property was located. On that date, the plaintiff deposited with the clerk $14,000 for the condemnation award fund, and the defendant was so notified. This sum was then available to the defendant on her request, subject to the order of the court.

On April 7, 1964, the defendant moved in court for the payment of the $14,000, and it was paid on or about April 30, 1964. From the date of taking and the deposit of the assessment of damages, the defendant continued to occupy the premises until she vacated them on February 29, 1964. On October 31, 1963, the defendant was notified by the plaintiff that, beginning November 1, 1963, the defendant was to pay the plaintiff $70 per month for use and occupancy of the condemned property. It was stipulated that this represented a reasonable value for use and occupancy of the premises. After October 31, demand for each month’s payment was reasserted by certified mail, the letters being dated December 9, 1963; March 30, 1964; April 22, 1964; and June 18, 1965. All letters were received by the defendant, who refused to pay. The total amount of the use and occupancy is $280. The plaintiff waived any claim for use and occupancy from the date of taking, September 19, 1963, to November 1, 1963. The defendant was represented by counsel throughout the entire condemnation proceedings. On December 4, 1964, the Superior Court approved a total payment to the defendant of $15,100, or an increase of $1100, which additional sum was thereafter paid to the defendant. The original sum of $14,000, as noted above, had been paid to the defend[109] ant on or about April 30, 1964, in accordance with the provisions of § 48-11 of the General Statutes.

The court adopted the stipulation of facts, entered into by the parties, as its own finding. The defendant assigned error in the court’s rendering judgment for the plaintiff when the conclusions reached by the court do not support it. Inasmuch as the adoption by the court of the parties’ stipulation did not and could not supply any conclusions reached by the court, we may consult the memorandum of decision, which is part of the record on appeal. Practice Book § 992. From this, it appears that the court concluded that under the statute (§ 13a-73), on the filing of the condemnation certificate, assessment and award, title to the property in fee simple passed to the state and thereafter the eondemnee could take the money for her own use, and she became divested of any interest in the property taken.

The specific assignments raised by the defendant in her appeal are: (a) She was not given reasonable time to quit possession; (b) the entry on the books of the state did not constitute a tender to the extent that it entitled the state to use and occupancy; (c) in equity, the negligence, if any, on the part of the defendant should not permit the state to enrich itself at the expense of the defendant; and (d) “just compensation is an equitable rather than a strictly legal or technical question and encompasses the related questions of value, interest and use and occupancy.” The last assignment is barely more than a paraphrase of the established rule for determining just compensation and lacks the specificity required by Practice Book § 990. There can of course be no controversy over the rules of law as stated in such cases as Redevelopment Agency v. Norwalk Aluminum Foundry Cor[110] poration, 155 Conn. 397; Waesche v. Redevelopment Agency, 155 Conn. 44, 48; Colaluca v. Ives, 150 Conn. 521, 530.

The first assignment of error, that the defendant was not given reasonable notice to vacate, is contradicted by the stipulation of the parties. From the date of taking, September 19, 1963, to November 1, 1963, the defendant occupied the premises at no charge for rental or use and occupancy. She was entitled, at the time of taking, to payment of the assessment of $14,000, and the state had the right to immediate possession. That she declined to take the amount of the award until April 30,1964, does not entitle her to interest on the money held for her under the provisions of § 48-11 of the General Statutes.

We need not pursue in detail the second and third assignments respecting lack of “tender” on the part of the state and that the “negligence” of the defendant should not permit the state to enrich itself at the expense of the defendant. Both claims are conclusory and have no support in the stipulation, which constitutes the finding, or in the statutes under which the proceedings were taken. As the trial court stated, “Any delay fashioned is and was caused directly or indirectly by the defendant.”

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State v. Sallak, 244 A.2d 60, 5 Conn. Cir. Ct. 107, 1968 Conn. Cir. LEXIS 173 (Colo. Ct. App. 1968).

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