Yorba Linda Estates v. Rodger, as Trustee CA4/3

Filed 12/10/15 Yorba Linda Estates v. Rodger, as Trustee CA4/3

NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS California Rules of Court, rule 8.1115(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 8.1115(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 8.1115.

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

DIVISION THREE

YORBA LINDA ESTATES, LLC et al.,

Plaintiffs, Cross-defendants and G051110 Respondents, (Super. Ct. No. 30-2013-00650665) v. OPINION LINDA M. RODGER, as Trustee, etc., et al.,

Defendants, Cross-complainants and Appellants;

YORBA LINDA ESTATES NORTH, LLC, et al.,

Cross-defendants and Respondents.

Appeal from a judgment of the Superior Court of Orange County, Robert J. Moss, Judge. Request for Judicial Notice. Judgment affirmed. Request for Judicial Notice denied.

Garrett & Tully, Ryan C. Squire and Edward W. Racek for Defendants, Cross-complainants and Appellants. Songstad & Randall and William D. Coffee for Plaintiffs, Cross-defendants and Respondents. * * * The dispute in this action arises out of two proposed neighboring housing developments in the County of Orange (County) in the area of the city of Yorba Linda: Cielo Vista, to be built by defendant, cross-complainant, and appellant North County BRS Project, LLC (BRS), and Esperanza Hills, to be built by plaintiff, cross-defendant and respondent Yorba Linda Estates, LLC (YLE). The trial court found one of the parcels in Cielo Vista is the servient tenement of an easement for public utilities and road purposes (Easement) for the benefit of one of the parcels in Esperanza Hills. The court quieted title to the Easement in favor of YLE and plaintiff OC 33, LLC (OC 33; collectively plaintiffs). BRS and defendants, cross-complainants, and appellants Linda M. Rodger and Nancy Ann Maggio, cotrustees of the Virginia Richards Revocable Intervivos Trust dated May 1, 1986 (Richards Trust; with BRS, collectively defendants), filed a cross- complaint against plaintiffs, and cross-defendants Yorba Linda Estates North, LLC, Janis Long Nicholas and John Jay Nicholas, trustees of the Nicholas Trust (collectively Nicholas), and Johanna Rae Long and Mary Margaret Long (collectively Long; all collectively cross-defendants) seeking a declaratory judgment that the Easement could be used only by the dominant tenement and none of the other parcels in Esperanza Hills, and that the Easement could not be overburdened. The court ruled defendants were not entitled to declaratory relief because no plans had been approved for the development of Esperanza Hills about which defendants were complaining. Thus there was no actual controversy and the issues were not ripe.