In Re Estate of Ross

SHAW, J.

The state of California has appealed from the order of the lower court fixing the value of the estate of said decedent for the purpose of declaring the amount of inheritance tax due thereon. A tract of land containing over two thousand acres was valued by the court, for that purpose, at three million three hundred and fifty thousand dollars. It is this valuation which the appellant seeks to overthrow.

The appellant first claims that the valuation is lower 'than was authorized by the evidence. It is unnecessary to cite authorities to the rule that a finding of fact upon a substantial conflict in the evidence will not be reviewed on appeal. There was substantial evidence to sustain even a lower valuation than that made by the court below.

Other objections of the appellant relate to the rulings of the court below at the trial, concerning the admission and rejection of evidence offered by the parties.

As is usual in such cases, the evidence of both parties consisted almost entirely of opinions of persons familiar with values of similar property in the vicinity of the land. To support its claim of value the state called divers witnesses to testify to their opinions regarding the same. In examining them in chief as to their familiarity with land values in that neighborhood, counsel for the state sought to prove by them the prices at which other property in the neighborhood had been actually sold, at or near the time of the death of the decedent. Upon the objection that this was incompetent at that stage of the examination, the court refused to allow this testimony. The rule in this state is well established and it fully sustains the action of the court below. It was thus

[66]

stated in the early case of

Central Pac. R. Co.

v.

Pearson,

35 Cal. 262:

“But, while the opinions of witnesses thus qualified by their knowledge of the subject are competent testimony, they cannot, upon the direct examination, be allowed to testify as to particular transactions, such as sales of adjoining lands, how much has been offered and refused for adjoining lands of like quality and location, or for the land in question, or any part thereof, or how much the company have been compelled to pay in other and like cases—notwithstanding those transactions may constitute the source of their knowledge. If this was allowed, the other side would have a right to controvert each transaction instanced by the witnesses and investigate its merits, which would lead to as many side issues as transactions and render the investigation interminable.”