Waters v. Lanigan

290 P.2d 370, 137 Cal. App. 2d 268, 1955 Cal. App. LEXIS 1184
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 28, 1955
DocketCiv. No. 16437
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 290 P.2d 370 (Waters v. Lanigan) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Waters v. Lanigan, 290 P.2d 370, 137 Cal. App. 2d 268, 1955 Cal. App. LEXIS 1184 (Cal. Ct. App. 1955).

Opinion

KAUFMAN, J.

This is an appeal from a judgment for damages in the sum of $1,078 in favor of respondents C. F. Waters et al., and against defendants and appellants Thomas Lanigan et al., and the granting of an injunction prohibiting appellants from allowing livestock owned or controlled by them to trespass upon respondents’ real property described therein.

Respondents C. F. Waters and Edna M. Waters filed a complaint alleging that Thomas and Margarita Lanigan wilfully and maliciously allowed their cattle to trespass upon [269]*269the real property in possession of respondents during the years 1952 and 1953. The case was tried by the court without a jury. The trial court found that (1) respondents at all times pertinent herein, were in possession of certain real property containing about 1,053 acres; (2) appellants wrongfully assumed the exclusive use and occupancy of said property for 1952 in allowing their livestock to trespass upon said property, to respondents’ damage in the sum of $1,053, said property having a pasturage value of $1.00 per acre during that year; (3) appellants permitted occasional trespasses during 1953, and the grass consumed being of an indeterminate amount, nominal damage in the sum of $25 was suffered in that year; (4) respondents repeatedly returned said livestock to appellants during the years 1952 and 1953, and gave them notice to keep said livestock off the aforesaid property, but appellants continued to permit the trespasses.

Appellants contend that they did not wrongfully assume the use and occupancy of this property, known as the Stewart Ranch, for the year 1952, since they had entered into a binding contract with respondents for grazing privileges on the Stewart Ranch .that year in exchange for respondents having similar rights on the Lanigan Ranch. If the alleged contract is found to be invalid, they say, still appellants’ cattle were allowed to enter upon that property with the consent of respondents, hence a tenancy at will was created which was never properly terminated. Error is charged further in the refusal of the court to allow opinion testimony on rental value by appellant Thomas Lanigan, as he clearly possessed the necessary qualifications.

Respondents leased approximately 1,053 acres of pasture land in San Benito' County from third parties, and used it for grazing cattle. This land, known as the Stewart Ranch, was contiguous to other pasture land owned by appellants. Consisting of parcels irregular in shape, they were joined together in several places. Between 1,150 and 1,160 acres of appellants’ land were situated in the same field as the Stewart Ranch, and together they formed one big pasture. Not until August, 1953, was the boundary fenced. This was done by appellants at their own expense. Prior to that, cattle could roam freely from one property to the other.

For approximately five years prior to 1952 respondents had used the entire field for grazing purposes. For the first two years no payment was made, while for the next three [270]*270years respondents paid rent to appellants under a verbal lease. Appellants then kept their cattle on other land.

Appellants in November, 1951, notified respondents that when the lease expired on January 1, 1952, it would not be renewed, and respondents would have to remove their cattle to their own property. Respondents continued to seek a renewal of the lease, and on January 17, 1952, asked Richard Stevens, District Attorney of San Benito County, to arbitrate the difficulties between the parties. Respondents’ cattle in the interim remained in the unfenced field. A meeting was held in Mr. Stevens’ office on January 24, 1952. It is out of the conversations that occurred on that day in Mr. Stevens’ office that appellants contend a contract was negotiated which, even if not valid, gave rise to a tenancy at will on the part of the appellants.

The conversations disclose that the parties at the time were anything but congenial. Appellant Mrs. Lanigan demanded that Waters remove his cattle from her land, but he refused, requesting a renewal of the lease which she refused because of the low rental he had been paying. Mr. Stevens suggested that they use the unfenced pasture land together, but Waters said he did not care to do anything like that. Mrs. Lanigan said she ought to be able to put 100 head of cattle upon the property to compensate for the feed which respondents’ cattle had eaten since the lease expired on January 1, 1952, and that if respondents did not remove their livestock, appellants would turn theirs into the area. Appellants cite portions of the record to prove that an agreement was reached that appellants could run 40 head of cattle in the pasture. This testimony was given by Mrs. Lanigan, and it is claimed that it is uncontradicted and must be accepted as true.

However, Mr. Waters testified that Mrs. Lanigan said she would turn 100 head of cattle into the pasture, but he objected. Mrs. Lanigan stated at one point that Waters had said that appellants could put 15 cattle in the pasture, but she had said she would put in 100 on until she found out how many he had and until they were even. She said, ‘ That was about all the conversation, and he would just sit there. He didn’t say anything.”

Mr. Stevens testified that Waters offered to allow appellants to run 15 head of cattle, but Mrs. Lanigan felt she was entitled to more, and threatened to put her cattle in unless Waters took his out. When asked if he recalled an agreement on that he said: “A meeting of the minds, no. It is my [271]*271recollection that Mr. Waters finally upped the amount of livestock that he would be willing to have Lanigans put into the area but I don’t believe he ever arrived at the same number of head that Mrs. Lanigan felt she was entitled to put in, but she did tell him that in the event he didn’t get his stock off she would put so many head of stock in there.” There is no dispute as to the fact that respondents removed their cattle not long after the January 24th meeting, respondents stating the date as February 5, 1952, and appellants agreeing that it was in the month of February. Shortly after the meeting, appellants put their cattle into the unfenced field where they admit that they remained until November 1, 1952. Appellant Thomas Lanigan stated that 70 head were on the property in February and that the number decreased to around 50 in June, and to 35 in September and October. Waters testified that the number was in the 70’s at all times, and sometimes higher. Appellants admit that respondents in February, 1952, and at other times during that year, demanded that appellants remove their cattle, but they refused.

The statement of the testimony of the parties as reviewed above is sufficient to answer appellants’ first contention that the trial court was in error in finding that appellants wrongfully assumed' the use and occupancy of the Stewart Ranch during 1952. Appellants cite numerous authorities to the effect that uncontradicted evidence of a witness which is not inherently improbable may not be disregarded by the trier of fact (Dickenson v. Samples, 104 Cal.App.2d 311, 314 [231 P.2d 530]; Mantonya v. Brailie, 33 Cal.2d 120, 127 [199 P.2d 677]; Wirz v. Wirz, 96 Cal.App.2d 171, 176 [214 P.2d 839, 15 A.L.R.2d 1129]; Dobson v. Dobson, 86 Cal.App.2d 13, 14 [

Related

People v. Nealis
232 Cal. App. Supp. 3d 1 (California Court of Appeal, 1991)
Williams v. Goodwin
41 Cal. App. 3d 496 (California Court of Appeal, 1974)
People Ex Rel. Department of Public Works v. Miller
231 Cal. App. 2d 130 (California Court of Appeal, 1964)

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Bluebook (online)
290 P.2d 370, 137 Cal. App. 2d 268, 1955 Cal. App. LEXIS 1184, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/waters-v-lanigan-calctapp-1955.