Meine v. Hren Ranches, Inc.

• Decision Date: 27 January 2015
• Docket Number: No. DA 14–0136.,DA 14–0136.
• Citation: 342 P.3d 22,2015 MT 21,378 Mont. 100
• Parties: Cody MEINE, Robert Meine, Dorothy Meine, Jerry Meine, Tamara Meine, Richard Meine, Linda Meine, Bobbie Mussard, Richard Blake and Robert Blake, Plaintiffs and Appellees, v. HREN RANCHES, INC., a Montana corporation, Jeff Nelson, Renee Klakken, Mike Klakken, Cheryl Hren, John Hren, Beverly Hren and John Does 1–5, Defendants and Appellants.
• Court: Montana Supreme Court

378 Mont. 100

342 P.3d 22

2015 MT 21

Cody MEINE, Robert Meine, Dorothy Meine, Jerry Meine, Tamara Meine, Richard Meine, Linda Meine, Bobbie Mussard, Richard Blake and Robert Blake, Plaintiffs and Appellees

v.HREN RANCHES, INC., a Montana corporation, Jeff Nelson, Renee Klakken, Mike Klakken, Cheryl Hren, John Hren, Beverly Hren and John Does 1–5, Defendants and Appellants.

No. DA 14–0136.

Supreme Court of Montana.

Submitted on Briefs Aug. 6, 2014.

Decided Jan. 27, 2015.

For Appellants: Harley R. Harris, Morrison, Sherwood, Wilson & Deola, PLLP, Helena, Montana.

For Appellees: David L. Vicevich, Dolphy O. Pohlman, Attorneys at Law, Butte, Montana.

Opinion

Justice LAURIE McKINNON delivered the Opinion of the Court.

¶ 1 Plaintiffs/Appellees (collectively, the Meines) commenced this action in the Fifth Judicial District Court, Beaverhead County, against Defendants/Appellants (collectively, the Hrens) seeking a determination that they hold a prescriptive easement over the Hrens' land and a permanent injunction prohibiting the Hrens from blocking or impeding the use of this easement. Following a bench trial, the District Court entered judgment in favor of the Meines. The Hrens now appeal. We affirm.

¶ 2 The Hrens raise four issues, which we restate as follows:

1. May a prescriptive easement arise in favor of a dominant estate that is not contiguous with the servient estate?

2. Is the creation of a prescriptive easement contingent on a finding that the dominant landowner's activities on the dominant estate are not illegal?

3. Does the evidence support the District Court's finding of a prescriptive easement in this case?

4. Did the District Court err in determining the nature and the scope of the prescriptive easement over the Hrens' property?

BACKGROUND

¶ 3 Small Horn Canyon is a steep narrow canyon, with an elevation of approximately 6,000 feet, about ten miles south of Dillon and ten miles east of Clark Canyon Reservoir. The plaintiffs in this case represent three generations of the Meine family.¹ The defendants are Hren Ranches, a small corporation operated by family members.² The Hrens have owned their property for nearly thirty years and purchased the property from Glenn Crampton, whose family was the original homesteaders.

¶ 4 Land in Small Horn Canyon is typically used for grazing livestock in the summer, with nearby landowners taking their livestock up in the early spring and out in late summer. A primitive route, beginning north of the Hrens' property and traveling southward, began for trailing livestock. This route, which is the center of the parties' dispute, is identified as Small Horn Canyon Road. The properties at issue and Small Horn Canyon Road are located in Townships 9 and 10 South, Range 9 West, Montana Principal Meridian, as shown in Diagram I (an excerpt of a 2008 United States Forest Service map included in the record, with labeling added):

Diagram I¶ 5 The disputed portion of Small Horn Canyon Road is depicted with a bold line in Diagram I. It begins at Carrigan Lane and increases in elevation as it continues for approximately ten miles in a southward direction. The relevant portion of the road proceeds as follows: It first crosses the 2,000–acre Hren property and enters land owned by Rebich & Sons Livestock Co.³ In the southern portion of the Rebich land, the road splits, with the western fork traversing a 60–acre parcel owned by Bobbie Mussard (the Mussard parcel) and the eastern fork continuing through the Rebich land. The two forks come together on land owned by David Schuett. After passing through the Schuett land, the road terminates on a group of three contiguous parcels totaling 470 acres owned by Robert, Dorothy, Jerry, Tamara, Richard, Linda, and Cody Meine (the Meine parcels).⁴

¶ 6 The record reflects that the Meine family began using Small Horn Canyon Road roughly 90 years ago. Robert Meine's parents homesteaded in Small Horn Canyon in the early 1920s, and the Meines have continued to own land in the area since then. In 1978, Robert and Dorothy Meine owned all of the Meine property presently at issue—i.e., the Mussard and Meine parcels—plus a substantial amount of neighboring land which they have since sold. (The Meines owned much of what is now Schuett's land in Diagram I.)

¶ 7 The Meine lands consist generally of timber and summer livestock range. The parcels have been improved by the construction of several cabins and two ponds. In the past 90 years, the Meines and their invitees and licensees have used the Meine lands for various business, agricultural, personal, family, social, and recreational purposes. These include grazing and pasturing sheep and cattle, harvesting timber, cutting firewood, hunting, fishing, camping, riding horses, ATV and motorcycle riding, snow mobiling, family gatherings, barbeques, hosting friends and acquaintances, guiding fishermen and hunters, and other activities associated with operation of a guest ranch. The Meines and their invitees and licensees have used Small Horn Canyon Road to access the Meines' lands for these purposes and have done so by foot, motor vehicle, and animal travel.

¶ 8 The Hrens purchased their ranchland in 1985 from Crampton, whose parents homesteaded the property in 1926 and 1927. John Hren, who began leasing the ranch from Crampton in the early 1970s, has grazed cattle on his ranch for over thirty years. There are corrals (labeled in Diagram I) near the north boundary of the Hren land at the bottom of a long, steep grade. Under certain weather and seasonal conditions, the grade becomes impassable for vehicles. Moreover, although Small Horn Canyon Road is sufficient to accommodate logging trucks, the road is not in a condition to accommodate a tractor-trailer hauling cattle. Jerry Meine testified that because cattle trucks are low to the ground and cannot navigate the steep grades and sharp corners of the road beyond the Hren corrals, cattle must be offloaded at that site. For these reasons, the Meines and their licensees and invitees have used an area measuring roughly 200 feet by 120 feet next to the corrals to park vehicles, to turn vehicles around, and to load or unload cattle. Use of this area began long before the Hrens owned their land and is necessary for the Meines' use of the remainder of the road.

¶ 9 At present, Richard and Robert Blake do not own property in Small Horn Canyon, but they maintain and take care of the Mussard parcel and will inherit that land upon Bobbie Mussard's death.

¶ 10 In the late 1970s, a tornado blew down a large patch of timber. Most of the timber was on BLM land, but roughly a quarter of it lay near the south end of the Meine parcels. BLM and the Meines entered an agreement to reconstruct, improve, and partially reroute Small Horn Canyon Road to accommodate logging trucks for harvesting and removing the downed timber. The road was constructed in its current course and condition in 1979. Pursuant to the agreement with BLM, Robert Meine contributed proceeds from his timber sales to the road construction.

¶ 11 The Meines have maintained the road, which is muddy in the fall and spring and tends to wash out. Maintenance work has been extensive, including bulldozing, grading, smoothing, laying gravel, repairing washouts, rebuilding bridges, installing culverts and water bars, fixing cattle guards, installing gates, spraying weeds, and removing snow. This work has required the use of heavy equipment such as bulldozers, graders, backhoes, and dump trucks. John Hren testified that the Meines have done maintenance work on the road, including the stretch through the Hren land, “[j]ust about every year.”

¶ 12 The Meines admitted into evidence a vast array of diaries and photographs. The diary books date from 1970 to the present. Most of the photographs were taken between 1980 and the present, but some date back to the 1960s, and there are a few older photographs of Robert Meine's parents at the homestead cabin. The diaries and photographs document a variety of events relating to the Meines' real property. These include recreational and commercial activities, trailing cattle, and road work. The diaries and photographs confirm the Meines' continuous use of Small Horn Canyon Road for varying purposes at all times of year.

¶ 13 Following some vandalism to a cabin on the Meines' property in the early 1970s, there have been locked gates variously placed on Small Horn Canyon Road, with the consent of neighboring landowners. Keys were provided to the landowners in the area who used the road. Presently, there is a gate across Small Horn Canyon Road on a separate parcel of Hren land about one and a half miles north of the Hren corrals (labeled “locked gate” in Diagram I). In an attempt to preclude any further use of the road across their property, the Hrens changed the locks on this gate in late 2007 and did not provide keys to the other landowners. The Hrens' actions precipitated a separate lawsuit filed by the Rebiches and Schuett against the Hrens in 2008. Ultimately, these parties entered into an agreement in 2010 establishing reciprocal road easements for the benefit of the Rebich, Schuett, and Hren properties. The agreement included a provision expressly prohibiting the parties from allowing the Meines to use the easements as “invitees” of the Rebiches, Schuett, or the Hrens.

¶ 14 The present litigation concerns only the Meines' right to cross the Hren land. The Meines claim a prescriptive right to use Small Horn Canyon Road across the Hrens' real property for purposes of accessing the Mussard and Meine parcels. The Meines continued to use Small Horn Canyon Road during 2008, 2009, and 2010 based on their belief that they had an independent, historical right to do so. This necessitated cutting the Hrens' locks and chains in order to use the road. The Hrens, in turn, filed numerous complaints against the Meines with the Beaverhead County Sheriff's Office, alleging trespass and criminal mischief. They also made charges against ...