Beck v. Pasadena Lake Vineyard Land & Water Co.

Water Companies—Conveyance to Members—Proportionate Share of Expense—Disincorporation—System of New Company—Customary Rates—Rights of Old Members.—Where a former water company had. conveyed lands and water rights to its members, agreeing to supply the water subject to Its rules and regulations, on condition of paying a proportionate share of the expense of maintaining its pipes, flumes, zanges and reservoirs, and after allowing them to become greatly out of repair had disincorporated, and a large number of its members had formed a new stock company, which had at great expense rehabilitated and improved the system, and constructed new pipes— one who was only a member of the old company, and who had applied to the new company for delivery of his share of water by connection with a new pipe wholly constructed by it, which was granted on certain conditions, including payment of its customary rates, cannot, after such connection and payment of such rates, insist upon delivery of the water under the former method of proportionate expense, without payment of the customary rates charged by the new company to all consumers of water.

In.—Injunction Suit — Severance of Connection With New Pipe— Right to Connect With Old System—Findings—Judgment Without Injury—Appeal.—In an action by a member of the former company to enjoin the new company from severing connection with its pipe for nonpayment of its customary rates, where the facts found are such that, whatever may be the plaintiff’s right to connect with the pipes and reservoirs of the former company, by paying his proportionate share of costs and expenses, he is not injured by a judgment against his right to receive water by connection with a new pipe constructed by the new company, without payment of its customary rates under a subsequent special contract for such payment, the judgment will be sustained upon appeal.

Cost Bill—Time for Filing—Delivery of Findings and Judgment to Clerk—Nonfiling—Nonpayment of Calendar Fee.—A cost bill filed and served within five days after delivery of the decision and judgment to the clerk cannot be stricken out because the clerk failed to indorse any filing upon the decision and judgment until after the filing of the cost bill, upon the alleged ground that the calendar fee had not been paid.

Id,—Nonpayment of Former Fee—Duty of Clerk as to New Service. The clerk cannot, because of the nonpayment of a former fee which he had neglected to demand in advance, properly refuse to perform a new service which it is his duty to perform. It was the duty of the clerk to file the findings and judgment when they were delivered to him to be filed, without regard to the unpaid calendar fee.

Id.—Neglect of Cleric’s Doty—Rights of Party not Forfeited.—As a general rule, a party is not to suffer the forfeiture of a right because the clerk has neglected to perform his duty.