Wagley v. Cross

347 So. 2d 859
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 30, 1977
Docket5932
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 347 So. 2d 859 (Wagley v. Cross) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wagley v. Cross, 347 So. 2d 859 (La. Ct. App. 1977).

Opinion

347 So.2d 859 (1977)

Grover C. WAGLEY, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
Samuel CROSS, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 5932.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

June 30, 1977.

*860 William R. Boone of Edwards & Boone, Many, for plaintiff-appellant.

Davis & Simmons by Kenneth N. Simmons, Many, for defendant-appellee.

Before HOOD, CULPEPPER and STOKER, JJ.

STOKER, Judge.

The question to be determined in this appeal is the correctness of the findings and judgment of the trial court in a possessory action. A portion of a residential lot in Many, Louisiana, is involved. Actually each party to this action has asserted a possessory action in his own behalf.[1] Judgment *861 was rendered in favor of Samuel Cross and against Grover C. Wagley maintaining Cross in the possession of the property to be described below and ordering Wagley to assert whatever claims he has to the ownership of the property within sixty days from the date the judgment becomes executory on pain of being precluded thereafter from asserting such a claim. The judgment recognizing and maintaining Samuel Cross in possession was made subject to a preliminary injunction granted by the trial court on November 13, 1975. Grover C. Wagley's demand to be recognized as possessor and maintained in possession was rejected. Plaintiff-appellant, Grover C. Wagley, appealed and defendant-appellee, Samuel Cross, has answered the appeal.

After trial the trial court found in favor of Samuel Cross, defendant and reconvenor, without giving written reasons, and his oral reasons are not recorded. The evidence is sufficient to support the finding of the trial court that Samuel Cross was entitled to have his possession recognized and maintained. We affirm his action.

As stated, this litigation presents a possessory action by both parties. However, they do not claim the same tract or fractional lot of land, but what each claims overlaps substantially what the other claims. Wagley's claim to possession rests entirely on civil possession, the recordation of a deed. The claim to possession by Cross rests entirely on corporeal possession. The land in question lies in a subdivision for which there is a recorded plat in evidence as plaintiff's Exhibit 4 (Tr. 5) known as Florien Giaque's Second Addition to Many, Sabine Parish, Louisiana.

The judgment in favor of Cross recognizes and maintains him in possession of the following:

Beginning at a point 195 feet North of the Southeast Corner of Lot Number 232 of Florien Giaque's Second Addition to the Town of Many, Louisiana, run thence West a distance of 55.0 feet to a point on an old fence row; run thence South along the said fence row a distance of 55.0 feet to the old Fisher-Many Public Road; run thence Southeasterly along the old Fisher-Many Public Road a distance of 70 feet to a point; run thence North a distance of 82.0 feet to the point of beginning.

The father of Samuel Cross moved to property to the immediate east of the above property in about 1920. Although no petitory action is involved, the evidence on behalf of Cross showed that the Cross family had possessed the above described property at various times since 1920 if it was not possessed continuously since that time. Samuel Cross ultimately acquired his father's property and for the last twelve years prior to the survey commenced by Wagley had mowed the grass on the above described property every two weeks. Pictures in evidence show a well mowed side yard area bearing all the appearances of having been frequently mowed and maintained as a residential type yard adjacent to a residence. Admittedly this periodic mowing is the only possession exercised by Cross in the period of one year prior to his disturbance by the survey activity of Mr. Leone acting for Mr. Wagley. Upon discovery of Leone performing the survey work and setting stakes, Cross ordered him to leave the property and desist from his work. Leone complied.

There was little or no evidence to establish any physical or corporeal possession by Wagley himself or through his lessee of any of the property specifically in dispute. The *862 trial court evidently resolved this issue against Wagley, and the record does not establish that he committed manifest error. There is no proof that Wagley's ancestors in title ever exercised corporeal possession of the disputed lot so as to support a claim to possession under Article 3660 of the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure. The sole basis for Wagley's claim of possession is the recording of deeds, or a deed, which include the disputed property and possession of a portion of the property described but located outside of the limits of the disputed property.

The possession of Cross is admittedly not buttressed by any title and therefore is based solely on the kind of possession necessary to support acquisitive prescription through thirty years of adverse possession. The trial court evidently resolved the issue in favor of Cross and we cannot say this resolution was manifest error.

The issues in this appeal were exceptionally well briefed and orally argued. Although counsel have been quite persuasive on numerous issues, we will endeavor to dispose of these issues as briefly as possible and see no need to treat in detail the evidence adduced on both sides. We regard the most serious issues presented to be the question of whether the acts of mowing grass by Samuel Cross constituted possession and whether or not he possessed within enclosures. We will proceed to consider the significant issues as we see them.[2]

POSSESSION BY CROSS WITHIN ENCLOSURES

The record indicates that at some time in the course of the litigation the trial judge viewed the property Cross claims he has possessed. Cross introduced in evidence twelve large color photographs taken from numerous points depicting the property from various directions and vistas. The pictures and evidence disclose the following concerning the property of which Cross was recognized and maintained as possessor.

1. The east side (82') merges into the property belonging to Samuel Cross now and which has belonged to the Cross family for many years prior to the acquisition of it by defendant-appellee, Samuel Cross.

2. The north line (55') is marked and bordered by an existing fence. (Nothing north of this line is in dispute.)

3. The west side (55') is marked by what is claimed by Cross to be a hedgerow, or remnant of a fence row. Wagley denies it is such.

4. The south side (70') lies along the old Fisher-Many Public Road which appears to have some identifiable ground feature such as a lower elevation and is bordered with a number of large oak trees planted by Samuel Cross' father.

The east and north lines have clearly visible enclosures. The Cross residence is just beyond the east line and the property on which the residence is located merges into the disputed property. The fence existing on the north side runs east and west and corners with an existing fence running north from the corner. Plaintiff-appellant's surveyor testified that if the latter fence were extended south it would coincide with what Cross contends is the west line. Considerable evidence supports the conclusion that a fence did exist once on the west line and that at this time there is a rise in elevation of approximately six inches along the west line. The surveyor testified this was characteristic of old fence lines or fence rows. However, during the period of this litigation there was no fence and there probably has been no fence along this line for thirty years or more.

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

Related

Sterling v. Berthelot
839 So. 2d 153 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2003)
Cuthbertson v. Unopened Succession of Tate
544 So. 2d 1236 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1989)
Amis v. Miller
524 So. 2d 71 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1988)
Manzanares v. Meche
506 So. 2d 957 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1987)
Alvarez v. Hub City Iron Works, Inc.
405 So. 2d 590 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1981)
Ferguson v. Gunther
385 So. 2d 876 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1980)
Pitre v. Tenneco Oil Co.
385 So. 2d 840 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1980)
Harper v. Willis
383 So. 2d 1299 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1980)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
347 So. 2d 859, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wagley-v-cross-lactapp-1977.