Pollard v. Rebman

SHAW, J.

When the owner of a parcel of land buys an easement over adjoining land for a way from his land to a public street, such easement becomes at once appurtenant to his land, giving him access to the street over such way.

If he fails to have the conveyance for such easement legally . recorded, it remains good, nevertheless, against the grantor of the easement. But if the grantor of the easement, in such case, for a valuable consideration, afterwards unconditionally conveys the servient tenement to another, who takes without notice of the grant of the right of way, or of the use of the way, and with no knowledge of facts sufficient to put him on inquiry concerning it, he will take the land free from the burden of the easement. (Civ. Code, secs. 1214, 1217;

Bell

v.

Pleasant,

145 Cal. 413, [104 Am. St. Rep. 61, 78 Pac. 957].)

If the way is at the time in use, and, although not fenced, is marked on the ground either by the effects of the travel over it or by fences or other bounds, so that it is plainly visible and its use obvious to one who examines the premises, the purchaser

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is put on inquiry with regard to such easement and cannot claim as a purchaser without notice thereof. He cannot escape this by buying without examination. He is bound to take notice of that which a reasonably careful inspection of the land would disclose to him.

These well established principles are decisive of the present case. On June 5, 1888, I. R. Dunkelberger conveyed to John Rebman lot numbered 26 of block A, in the Dunkelberger tract, fronting fifty feet on the south line of Ninth Street in the city of Los Angeles, and extending back two hundred feet. On the following day Dunkelberger, who then owned the land lying to the east and south of said lot, conveyed to Rebman a right of way twelve feet wide from the rear of said lot and extending one hundred feet east to a public blind alley opening into a public street called Sunbury Street. This conveyance was .not acknowledged and was never recorded. Afterward Rebinan conveyed lot 26 to his wife, Prances M. Rebman, the principal defendant herein, who has ever since remained the owner thereof. This conveyance, of course, carried with it the appurtenances, including the said right of way for access to the street from the rear of the lot. The Rebmans resided on lot 26 before the deed from Dunkelberger to Rebman in 1888, and have ever since resided there. Rebman used the rear end of the lot as a place for storing lumber and building material, and used said way as a means of ingress and egress. A barn was built by him on the southwest corner of the lot and a fence was built inclosing the lot. A gate was made in the fence at the rear, by means of which access to the way from the lot was afforded. The way was used by him whenever occasion required, from 1888 down to October 23, 1907, when this action was begun. On May 10, 1902, Dunkelberger, for a valuable consideration, conveyed to Alida A. Pollard, the principal plaintiff herein, all the land south of lot 26, including the way in question. (B. S'. Pollard is joined merely because he is her husband.) The way was not excepted and no mention of the Rebman easement was made in the deed to Mrs. Pollard. The purchase was made for Mrs. Pollard by S. B. Abbott, her father. Neither he nor his daughter knew anything of the conveyance of the right of way, or of Rebman’s claim thereunder. Abbott and Mrs. Pollard both examined the premises before purchasing, but neither of them