Doxey v. Crissey

• Decision Date: 26 June 2020
• Docket Number: A20A0443
• Citation: 846 S.E.2d 166,355 Ga.App. 891
• Parties: DOXEY v. CRISSEY, et al.
• Court: Georgia Court of Appeals

355 Ga.App. 891

846 S.E.2d 166

DOXEY

v.CRISSEY, et al.

A20A0443

Court of Appeals of Georgia.

June 26, 2020

Hylton B. Dupree Jr., Blake Robert Carl, Marietta, for Appellant.

Robert Lee Beard Jr., Richard W. Calhoun, Marietta, for Appellee.

Rickman, Judge.

Carolyn Doxey appeals the trial court's Order Granting Declaratory Judgment and Injunctive Relief, which permanently enjoined her from obstructing or interfering with the use of a bridle trail easement on her property. She contends that the trial court erred by considering parole evidence to determine the meaning of "bridle trail," finding that the purported bridle trail easement had not been abandoned, and restricting testimony of a fact witness. For reasons that follow, we vacate the judgment of the trial court and remand the case for proceedings consistent with this opinion.

"[W]e review a trial court's grant of a permanent injunction for a manifest abuse of discretion. We review issues of law de novo, applying the ‘plain legal error’ standard of review." Harris v. S. Christian Leadership Conference , 313 Ga. App. 363, 364, 721 S.E.2d 906 (2011). "[W]ith respect to factual issues we construe the evidence in favor of the trial court's findings and affirm if there is any evidence to support them, regardless of whether the evidence would also support opposite findings." Id.

So viewed, the evidence showed that in December 1970, Clem and Carolyn Doxey purchased Lot 28 in Section VI of the Oakton subdivision, and that their house is located on that lot. The warranty deed conveying Lot 28 to the Doxeys referenced a 10-foot wide bridle trail easement along the east property line. Clem Doxey subsequently purchased Lot 27 in Section IV of the Oakton subdivision, and the Doxeys built a tennis court on it. In November 1995, Clem Doxey conveyed both lots to Carolyn Doxey via warranty deed, which was made subject to all easements of record and referenced the 10-foot wide bridle trail easement along the east line of Lot 28 in the legal description of Lot 28. A recorded plat of Section VI of the Oakton subdivision, which is referenced in the legal description of Lot 28 in the November 1995 warranty deed, shows a 10-foot bridle trail easement along the east property line of Lot 28. In 1998, a plat was recorded showing the movement of the bridle trail easement from the east side of Lot 28 to the east side of Lot 27. Neither party has challenged the relocation of the easement.

Lots 27 and 28 of the Oakton subdivision back up to Kennesaw Mountain National Park and the bridle trail easement connects the street in front of the Doxey property to the park. One of the trails in the park is approximately two to three feet from Doxey's back property line. Evidence was presented that some residents of the Oakton subdivision initially used the easement on Lot 28 to gain pedestrian access to the park, and later used the easement on Lot 27 for the same purpose. The only evidence of a horse using the easement came from Carolyn Doxey, who testified that in the early 1970s she saw a girl riding a horse on it.

In the early 2000s, Doxey extended a fence that ran between the back of Lot 28 and the park to cover the back of Lot 27. Initially, there was an approximately 3-foot wide gate that allowed continued pedestrian access to the park from the Doxey property. At some point between 2002 and 2004, that gate was nailed shut and then removed, precluding access to the park from the Doxey property.

In 2018, ten residents of the Oakton subdivision brought an action against Carolyn Doxey for declaratory judgment and injunctive relief, seeking to permanently enjoin Doxey from obstructing or interfering with the easements on Lots 27 and 28 of the Oakton subdivision and to require Doxey to remove the fences blocking those easements.

After a bench trial, the trial court determined that the plaintiffs had the right to enforce the easement on Lot 27 and declared that all residents of all sections of the Oakton subdivision had the right to continued unobstructed use of that easement as pedestrians or equestrians. The trial court permanently enjoined Doxey from obstructing or interfering with the residents’ use of the easement, and ordered her to remove the fence blocking the easement.¹

1. Doxey contends that the trial court erred by considering parole evidence to determine the meaning of the term "bridle trail." We agree.

(a) An easement created by a subdivision plat is considered "an easement by express grant." (Citation and punctuation omitted.) Zywiciel v. Historic Westside Vill. Partners , 313 Ga. App. 397, 399 (1), 721 S.E.2d 617 (2011). "In interpreting an express easement, the rules of contract construction apply. The construction of a contract is a question of law for the court. The cardinal rule of construction is to ascertain the parties’ intent. Parol evidence may not be considered unless the written instrument is ambiguous." (Citations omitted.) Irvin v. Laxmi, Inc. , 266 Ga. 204, 205 (1), 467 S.E.2d 510 (1996).

A contract is ambiguous if the words used therein leave the intent of the parties in question—i.e., that intent is uncertain, unclear, or is open to various interpretations. On the other hand, no ambiguity exists where, examining the contract as a whole and affording the words used therein their plain and ordinary meaning, the contract is capable of only one reasonable interpretation.

(Citation and punctuation omitted.) Bowers v. Today's Bank , 347 Ga. App. 615, 618 (1), 820 S.E.2d 459 (2018). Dictionaries may be used to supply the plain and ordinary sense of a word. Mkt. Place Shopping Ctr. v. Basic Bus. Alternatives , 213 Ga. App. 722, 722 (1), 445 S.E.2d 824 (1994).

The portions of the recorded plats and deeds evidencing the easement on the Doxey property are clearly labeled, "bridle trail easement." The plain and ordinary meaning of bridle trail or bridle path is "a trail for horseback riding." The American Heritage Dictionary , 5th ed. (2020). See also Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary (2020) (defining bridle path as "a trail suitable for horseback riding"). The term is not susceptible to any other reasonable interpretation. Accordingly, we conclude that the unambiguous term "bridle trail" means that the easement is for the purpose of providing a trail for horseback riding. The fact that the path or trail may also be suitable for other uses does not render the term "bridle trail" ambiguous.

(b) Although the easement was designated for use as a bridle trail, a change in "the manner,...