Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

A steep 12" pipe connects the drainage systems of two County-maintained roadways. No records have been found memorializing the construction, but it appears to be of the 1940's vintage of the neighboring houses. The County has accepted both roads.

The connecting pipe has completely failed. The County disclaims responsibility for what happens between the roads as "owners must convey stormwater from the top to the bottom of their property".

Thus the County continues to dump concentrated stormwater into a known-failed pipe, as they have for ten years. DiMartino and Skoumbas appear to be the most relevant appeal court cases... can you suggest other reading on the topic?

As a twist: this is an odd section of land dedicated as a pathway but never accepted by the County. Thus has no recorded land owner. In 1914 the County "did not accept" the land. The lack of ownership means nobody can fix the pipe, even if they wanted to pay the $22,000 cost.


Asked on 8/08/11, 1:39 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Craig Collins Craig M. Collins, Esq.

If the drainage situation has caused a problem such as land subsidence, the County may be liable. However, your question suggests that it hasn't yet caused any problems and you're trying to get the situation fixed before it does. If that's the situation, you will have a tougher legal fight. If you're a neighboring property owner or otherwise potentially affected, you might sue the County to abate a nuisance.

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Answered on 8/08/11, 6:53 am

I agree with Mr. Collins that unless you are a property owner affected by the discharge, you have no standing to do anything. I write to add that no property is ownerless. Whomever owned the property before it was subdivided into lots, leaving the dedicated pathways, still owns the pathways when the county declines the dedication. Now a days if the county did not want to accept the dedication, the county would require creation of some form of common interest association of adjacent owners to own the path, as part of the subdivision process. But of course that is now, this was then. Finding the successor owners from the 1940's may be a formidable task to the point of being impossible for all real purposes, but that's who owns it. Someone else may have a right to claim it under prescriptive rights, but until they do and get a judgment, the original subdivider is the one with standing to deal with the county.

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Answered on 8/08/11, 11:03 am


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