Vestal v. Young

82 P. 381, 147 Cal. 715, 1905 Cal. LEXIS 459
California Supreme Court·Decided September 16, 1905·No. Sac. No. 1134.·Published·Cited by 28 cases

Opinion

ANGELLOTTI, J.

This is an appeal'by defendants from a judgment enjoining them from using or maintaining a certain ditch constructed by them upon and across certain land of plaintiff in Lassen County, from carrying or conducting1 water across said land by means of said ditch, and from entering upon said land for the purpose of repairing said ditch, and also awarding plaintiff five dollars damages and his costs.

The facts of the case, as shown by the findings of the court, are very simple. Plaintiff acquired his land by patent from the. United States on April 18, 1883, and has ever since owned and possessed the same. While this land was still unoccupied land of the government,—viz., about the year 1865,—the defendants, or their grantors, constructed across this land, a flume ranging from two to three feet in width and about sixteen inches in depth, and diverted water from Pitt River into said flume, and by means thereof conducted the water across this land to their own adjoining lands, where they used it for a beneficial purpose. This use of the flume by defendants was continuous from the year 1865 to the year 1896, and there is no question in the case as to the right of defendants to continue such use, and exercise and enjoy all the incidents thereof.

In the year 1896, defendants, without plaintiff’s consent, constructed on plaintiff’s land about six rods of ditch on a line different from ,and from one to twenty feet distant from, the flume line. In the year 1900, defendants, without plaintiff’s consent, extended the six rods of ditch to a ditch four feet in width and three feet in depth, extending across the *717 northern portion of plaintiff's land for about one fourth of a mile, on a line distant from one to twenty feet from the flume line, but extending in the same' general direction. Ever since then defendants have carried their water across plaintiff’s land by means of said ditch, and threaten to continue so to do, and have discontinued the use of their flume, with the •exception of about five rods at the intake of the water from the river.

The trial court found that “by reason of such acts and ■threatened acts of defendants, the plaintiff is, and will be ■obstructed in his rights to the free use and possession of his •said lands to which he is entitled as the owner in fee simple "thereof, and that such acts of defendants will, if continued, ripen into an easement.”

This action was commenced September 26, 1900.

1. There can be no doubt that the facts detailed above, •shown by the findings, fully sustain the judgment as to the injunction. The right of defendants in regard to plaintiff’s land, whatever its source, was simply to continue the use "thereof they were enjoying at the time he acquired the land. They were then maintaining a flume across the same for the purpose of carrying the water, which, it may be assumed, they had lawfully appropriated, and for which they, consequently, had a right of way over the land, under the provisions of the .act of Congress of July 26, 1866. (Rev. Stats. U. S., secs. 2339, 2340, [Comp. Stats. U. S., 1901, p. 1437].)

This right of way had, at the time'plaintiff acquired his land, been definitely fixed and located along a certain line, .and 'the method of use thereof—viz., a flume—apparently finally adopted. For many years after the acquirement by plaintiff of his land, the use along this line and in this manner was continued and acquiesced in by all the parties.

We need not here discuss the question as to whether defendants might lawfully have constructed a ditch of the same size as their flume along their flume line. (See, however, Allen v. San Jose Land etc. Co., 92 Cal. 138, [28 Pac. 215]; Barrows v. Fox, 98 Cal. 63, 66, [32 Pac. 811].)

They constructed this ditch upon another line, and for this purpose they appropriated to their use different land Pf plaintiff.

The precise location of the right of way had been as defi *718 nitely and finally fixed by the acts of the defendants as it would have been had the metes and bounds been set forth in an instrument of grant. (See 14 Cyc. of Law & Prac., pp. 1161, 1205.) Defendants had acquired the right to that precise location and no other. The remainder of plaintiff’s land was his, free from any right of defendants. We know of no principle of law that would warrant defendants in subjecting without his consent another and different portion of his land to their use, even although they abandoned their former location. It is elementary that the location of an easement of this character cannot be changed by either party without the other’s consent, after it has once been finally established, whether by the express terms of a grant or by acts of the parties tantamount in their effect. (See Jaqui v. Johnson, 27 N. J. Eq. 526, 552.) The granting of a right over one portion of a person’s land, gives the grantee no right over any other portion. Where such a grantee attempts to exercise his right over some other portion, by subjecting such portion to his use, without the consent of the owner, he deprives the owner of the free use and possession thereof, and his acts, if continued the requisite time, will ripen into an easement, and the owner will be permanently deprived of his property. That such a result injuriously affects the rights of the owner cannot well be questioned. As was said in Brown v. People’s Ditch Co., 104 Cal. 248, [37 Pac. 922], “It is well settled that the owner of an easement cannot change its character, or materially increase the burden upon the servient estate, or injuriously affect the rights of other persons.”

It is entirely immaterial in this connection that the new line was only from one to twenty feet distant from the old line. It was upon property of plaintiff, over which defendants had no right whatever, and the principle is the same as if the new line had been hundreds of feet, away from the old one.

It is suggested that the trial court did not find in what particulars the plaintiff will be obstructed in his rights to the free use and possession of his land, or injured in his property, by the maintenance of the ditch. The facts found and detailed above, sufficiently show this. By the maintenance and use of the ditch, plaintiff is deprived of the free use and posr session of his real property without right—and will be per *719 manently deprived thereof if such maintenance and use are continued. This alone is sufficient to entitle plaintiff to the relief by injunction granted. It is the settled law of this state, that irrespective of other damage, an injunction will be granted to prohibit the continuance of action that obstructs one in the free use and enjoyment of his land where such action, if continued, will ripen into an easement. (See Ewing v. Mott, 90 Cal. 231, 237, [27 Pac. 194]; Walker v. Emerson, 89 Cal. 456, 458, [26 Pac. 968]; Moore v. Clear Lake W. W., 68 Cal. 146, 150, [8 Pac. 816]; Conkling v. Pacific Improvement Co., 87 Cal. 296, 305, [25 Pac. 399]; Henne v. Lankershim,

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Vestal v. Young, 82 P. 381, 147 Cal. 715, 1905 Cal. LEXIS 459 (Cal. 1905).

82 P. 381 (Vestal v. Young) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Doe v. Biter CA5
California Court of Appeal, 2023
Briggs v. Select Portfolio Servicing CA4/2
California Court of Appeal, 2021
Krieger v. Pacific Gas & Electric Co.
119 Cal. App. 3d 137 (California Court of Appeal, 1981)
Shammel v. Vogl
396 P.2d 103 (Montana Supreme Court, 1964)
Keeler v. Haky
325 P.2d 648 (California Court of Appeal, 1958)
Fairrington v. Dyke Water Co.
323 P.2d 1001 (California Supreme Court, 1958)
Hartsif v. Wann
293 P.2d 65 (California Court of Appeal, 1956)
Goubert v. Pomona Valley Water Co.
289 P.2d 601 (California Court of Appeal, 1955)
Goubert v. Pomona Valley Water Co.
137 Cal. App. 2d 852 (Appellate Division of the Superior Court of California, 1955)
Posey v. Dove
257 P.2d 541 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 1953)
Youngstown Steel Products Co. v. City of Los Angeles
240 P.2d 977 (California Supreme Court, 1952)
Smith v. Rock Creek Water Corp.
208 P.2d 705 (California Court of Appeal, 1949)
Bartholomew v. Staheli
195 P.2d 824 (California Court of Appeal, 1948)
Hannah v. Pogue
147 P.2d 572 (California Supreme Court, 1944)
Snodgrass v. Crane
134 P.2d 862 (California Court of Appeal, 1943)
Ward v. City of Monrovia
108 P.2d 425 (California Supreme Court, 1940)
Union Oil Co. v. Domengeaux
86 P.2d 127 (California Court of Appeal, 1939)
Coulsen v. Aberdeen-Springfield Canal Co.
277 P. 542 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1929)
Bottoms v. Superior Court
256 P. 422 (California Court of Appeal, 1927)