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Date: 06-21-2022
Case Style:
Steve Snow and Kaci Snow v. Town of Calumet Oklahoma
Case Number: 119748
Judge: Winchester
Court: Supreme Court of Oklahoma on appeal from the District Court of Canadian County
Plaintiff's Attorney:
Defendant's Attorney: Joseph P. Weaver and Jana L. Knott
Description: El Reno, Oklahoma condemnation lawyer represented Plaintiffs, who sued Defendant on trespass and inverse condemnation theories.
¶0 Landowners sued the Town of Calumet for trespass and inverse condemnation due to maintaining two municipal sewer lines across the owners' property after the expiration of two temporary easements. The town counterclaimed to quiet title. Both parties moved for summary judgment. The district court granted the landowners' motion for summary judgment on the town's quiet-title claim and granted the town's motion for summary judgment on the landowners' claims for trespass and inverse condemnation. The landowners appealed the district court's judgment on their inverse condemnation claim. This Court retained the appeal. We reverse the district court's judgment, holding the landowners have standing to assert an inverse condemnation claim, and we remand for trial.
¶1 The limited issue before this Court is whether Appellants Steve Snow and Kaci Snow (the Snows) have standing to assert a claim for inverse condemnation against the Town of Calumet (Town), Oklahoma. We answer this question in the affirmative. Town's temporary easements for sewer lines installed by Town on the Snows' property expired in 2010, and Town then sought perpetual easements without compensation from the Snows for the continual use and maintenance of the sewer lines. Under these facts, the Snows have standing to assert a claim for inverse condemnation.
Outcome:
¶13 The Snows have standing to assert an inverse condemnation claim. Town's right to utilize the land ended when the temporary easements expired in 2010. Town sought perpetual easements from the Snows for the continual use and maintenance of the sewer lines. The Snows requested just compensation for the Town to continue to utilize the land, but Town refused to compensate the Snows. Accordingly, we hold that the district court erred in granting summary judgment to Town, holding that the Snows did not have standing to assert an inverse condemnation claim. We remand the cause for further proceedings.
"DISTRICT COURT'S JUDGMENT REVERSED AND REMANDED FOR TRIAL ON INVERSE CONDEMNATION CLAIM.
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: