Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 00-063.
| Docket Nº | No. 00-063. |
| Citation | 787 A.2d 1229 |
| Case Date | November 05, 2001 |
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of Vermont |
v.
TOWN OF DUXBURY
No. 00-063.
Supreme Court of Vermont.
November 5, 2001.
ENTRY ORDER
Defendant Town of Duxbury appeals a superior court order finding the Town negligent by failing to repair damage to property owned by plaintiffs Alan and Emily Graham caused by excessive water runoff. The Town claims it was not negligent and is immune from liability under the common-law doctrine of sovereign immunity for municipal governmental actions. We agree and reverse.
The design for Morse Road was reviewed and approved by the State of Vermont Agency of Transportation. The Town of Duxbury took over Morse Road as a Class 3 town road after Morse obtained all necessary permits. The Town has maintained the road, the culvert, and the ditch since that time, but has never performed any maintenance on the swale located on the Grahams' lot.
At the time the Grahams purchased their property, the swale was visible. Also visible were the gravelly and unstable soils on the rear of the property. In fact, Morse had once used the property as a gravel pit.
The events in issue occurred on August 7, 1997 when there was a very heavy downpour that washed out part of Morse Road. The downpour also eroded away a large chunk of the bank on plaintiffs' land where the water left the swale and plunged down to the stream. It left a canyon-like gully emanating from the swale.
After discovering the erosion, Emily Graham contacted the chair of the Town's selectboard, who promised to inspect the problem and have the culvert cleared. The Town cleared sand from the culvert the next day, although it is not clear that the condition of the culvert caused the erosion on the Grahams' property.2 The Town took no action to repair or revise the original drainage system Morse had designed and constructed. The Grahams then sought professional assistance to help prevent further erosion on their property, as well as the threat of future erosion to neighboring properties and to Morse Road, and eventually took action on their own, expending $14,289 to revise the drainage system on their property.
In April 1998, the Grahams filed a claim against the Town of Duxbury in Washington Superior Court seeking to recover their expenditures to address the drainage problem, as well as other unspecified damages. After a bench trial, the court concluded that the Town was not negligent as
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Civetti v. Turner, No. 19-036
...and no liability for injuries suffered as a result of such activities may attach." Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) (citing cases); accord McMurphy v. State, 171 Vt. 9, 14 n.2, 757 A.2d 1043, 1047 n.2 (2000) ("This Court has long held that the m......
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In re Robinson, No. 18-112
...de novo. See In re Sinnott, 2004 VT 16, ¶ 11, 176 Vt. 596, 845 A.2d 373 (mem.) (citing Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) for proposition that "this Court's review of conclusions of law is plenary and nondeferential"). Our standard of review regar......
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Civetti v. Turner, No. 2019-036
...and no liability for injuries suffered as a result of such activities may attach." Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) (citing cases); accord McMurphy v. State, 171 Vt. 9, 14 n.2, 757 A.2d 1043, 1047 n.2 (2000) ("This Court has long held that the m......
-
In re Robinson, No. 2018-112
...de novo. See In re Sinnott, 2004 VT 16, ¶ 11, 176 Vt. 596, 845 A.2d 373 (mem.) (citing Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) for proposition that "this Court's review of conclusions of law is plenary and nondeferential"). Our standard of review regar......
-
Civetti v. Turner, 19-036
...and no liability for injuries suffered as a result of such activities may attach." Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) (citing cases); accord McMurphy v. State, 171 Vt. 9, 14 n.2, 757 A.2d 1043, 1047 n.2 (2000) ("This Court has long held that the m......
-
In re Robinson, 18-112
...de novo. See In re Sinnott, 2004 VT 16, ¶ 11, 176 Vt. 596, 845 A.2d 373 (mem.) (citing Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) for proposition that "this Court's review of conclusions of law is plenary and nondeferential"). Our standard of review regar......
-
Civetti v. Turner, 2019-036
...and no liability for injuries suffered as a result of such activities may attach." Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) (citing cases); accord McMurphy v. State, 171 Vt. 9, 14 n.2, 757 A.2d 1043, 1047 n.2 (2000) ("This Court has long held that the m......
-
In re Robinson, 2018-112
...de novo. See In re Sinnott, 2004 VT 16, ¶ 11, 176 Vt. 596, 845 A.2d 373 (mem.) (citing Graham v. Town of Duxbury, 173 Vt. 498, 499, 787 A.2d 1229, 1232 (2001) (mem.) for proposition that "this Court's review of conclusions of law is plenary and nondeferential"). Our standard of review regar......