Case Name: REX BRACE, Respondent, v. STEELE COUNTY, NORTH DAKOTA, a Municipal Corporation, Appellant
Court: North Dakota Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: North Dakota
Decision Date: 1950-03-23
Citations: 77 N.D. 276
Docket Number: File No. 7193
Parties: REX BRACE, Respondent, v. STEELE COUNTY, NORTH DAKOTA, a Municipal Corporation, Appellant.
Judges: Nuessle, C. J., Morris, Burke and Grimson, J«J., concur.
Reporter: North Dakota Reports
Volume: 77
Pages: 276–288

Head Matter:
[File No. 7193]
REX BRACE, Respondent, v. STEELE COUNTY, NORTH DAKOTA, a Municipal Corporation, Appellant.
(42 NW2d 672)
Opinion filed March 23, 1950.
Rehearing denied May 31, 1950
Wallace E. Warner, Attorney General, P. O. Sathre, G. E. Brace, Assistant Attorneys General, and Albert C. Bakken, State’s Attorney of Steele County, for appellant. .
Boy K. Bedetske, for respondent.

Opinion:
Christianson, J.
The plaintiff: brought this action to enjoin the defendant county from obstructing a natural waterway and drain and thereby flooding and injuring certain lands owned by the plaintiff. The obstruction complained of consisted of a certain graded highway which it is alleged obstructed the flow-of water, and resulted in the flooding' of the lands owned by the plaintiff.
The action was instituted by summons dated May 6,1949. The complaint in the action was verified by the plaintiff on the same day and on that same day the plaintiff made an affidavit in support of an application for a temporary injunction. Thereafter the summons, the verified complaint, and plaintiff's affidavit were submitted to the judge of the said district court in support of an application for a temporary injunction and the judge issued an order citing the defendant to show cause before the said court at a place stated in such order on June 1, 1949, at 2 o'clock P.M. of that day, why the defendant, its officers, servants, agents and employees should not be enjoined during the pendency of the action or until the1 further order of the court from obstructing the natural watercourse and drainway mentioned in the complaint and why the obstruction so' located and maintained by said defendant, its officers, servants, agents, and employees on and across said natural watercourse and drainway should not be removed therefrom'until the further order of the court; and, which said order to show cause further .provided that until the further order of the court the defendant, its officers, servants, agents, and employees be restrained and enjoined from in any way obstructing the free flowage of water in said watercourse and that any obstruction there constructed and maintained by said defendant, its officers, servants, agents, and employees be forthwith removed from said watercourse and drain.
The summons, complaint, affidavit, and order to show cause' were duly served upon the defendant county by service upon the chairman of the board of county commissioners of the county on May 13, 1949. The defendant interposed a general demurrer to the complaint, which demurrer was served upon the attorney for the plaintiff on May 27, 1949. At the time and place specified in the order to show cause the plaintiff appeared by his counsel and the defendant appeared by its counsel and made and filed a return to the order to show cause. Such return set forth certain objections to the order to show cause and prayed that the order to show cause be vacated and set aside. The return was verified by one of tbe attorneys for the defendant. On October 20, 1949, the trial court made the following memorandum decision:
"This matter comes before the court on an order to show cause why a temporary restraining order issued by the court on -May 9th, 1949, should not be continued during the pendency of the action.
"It appears from plaintiff's complaint and affidavit upon which .the order was originally issued that defendant is obstructing •a natural Avatercourse draining a considerable section of land lying immediately south of a road built and maintained by the defendant.
"Plaintiff Avas not required to post security upon the issuance of the temporary order. Plaintiff should, therefore, post a personal bond with the clerk of this court in the sum of one thousand (1,000) dollars to indemnify the defendant as provided by section 32-0605 NDRC 1943.
"Upon such bond being posted this court will make its order continuing the temporary restraining order during the pend-ency of this action restraining defendant, its officers,, servants, agents and employees from in any manner obstructing the natural Avatercourse and drainway located over, upon, and across the lands of the plaintiff, described in plaintiff's complaint, as being a Avatercourse and drain located and extending diagonally across the Wl of Section 12, Township 144 North, Range 55 "West, in Steele County, North Dakota, in a northeasterly direction and also extending across the northwest portion of the east half of said section, and against maintaining any obstruction in, on and across said natural watercourse and drainway, and that said defendant, its officers, servants, agents and employees be restrained and enjoined from in any way obstructing the natural and free flowage of water in said described watercourse.
"That the above entitled action be disposed of by trial -of the merits at the first term of court in said county folloAving the issuance of this order."
On that same day the trial court made an order granting a temporary injunction. Such order recited that the matter came on to be-heard before the court at the time specified in the order to show cause, that the parties appeared by their respective attorneys and that the court being fully advised in the premises and having read the files, record, and papers in the action, "and good cause appearing therefor" ordered that during the pendency of the action or until the court shall otherwise order the temporary injunction theretofore made by the court bearing date May 9, 1949, be continued in full force and effect upon plaintiff's filing with the clerk of the district court a prescribed bond, which bond was thereafter filed. The defendant has appealed to this court from the order made October 20,1949, granting the temporary injunction.
The obstruction of which the plaintiff complained and which he alleged blocked and obstructed the natural and free drainage of water in the watercourse and drainway as the same flows across plaintiff's land and caused plaintiff's lands to be flooded and damaged consisted of a certain highway grade constructed across the watercourse. The contention was that the highway as constructed obstructed and blocked the watercourse and drain-way and caused water to accumulate and flood plaintiff's lands, and that no adequate culverts or bridges had been constructed so that the water could flow in the watercourse and drainway. In a former action brought by the State against the plaintiff Brace (State v. Brace, 76 ND 314, 36 NW2d 330) seeking to condemn much'if not all of the 'lands involved in this action for a Wild Life Refuge .this-court referred to the highway and the culverts provided for the passage of the water under the highway as follows:
"A highway was later constructed along the section line extending eastward from the northeast corner of Section 12. A grade was filled in across a low marshy swale through which the drainage ditch had been dug. This resulted in filling in and blocking the ditch. Culverts were installed in the grade above the ground level and some distance above the bottom of the grade. This resulted in not only obstructing the flow of the drainage ditch but also to some extent the natural over-flow of water out of Puller's Lake across the lowland to the northeast."
In the concluding paragraph in appellant's brief on this appeal it is said:
"The county commissioners have, during the past summer, reconstructed the highway grade along the north side of plaintiff's land and had culverts installed adequate to carry the drainage of the watercourse described in plaintiff's complaint, and such culverts are at least as low as the bottom of the natural drainage of the area involved herein.
"Therefore, there is no purpose to be subserved by the injunction involved herein. Consequently, defendants urge that the order appealed from was improperly made and such order should be vacated and set aside."
In respondent's brief on this appeal reference is made to the foregoing statement in appellant's brief and it is said that if culverts have been constructed which are adequate to carry the water that "then this appeal is moot" and "there remains then, no question for this court to determine as there has been a full and complete compliance with the defendant by the Order of the Court and the obstruction has been removed. It is, therefore, submitted that the appeal should be dismissed because the questions involved herein are moot. If, however, such questions are not now moot, then the order of the District Court appealed from should be affirmed so that there will be no recurrence of the condition which previously existed upon the plaintiff's lands by the acts of the defendant."
On the oral argument in this court the parties were represented by the same counsel who represented them in the court below and on such argument counsel for the respondent stated that his client, the plaintiff, has informed him that the defendant has constructed adequate culverts and that the obstruction in the watercourse formerly existing and which prevented the free flowage of water and drainage has been removed and that the purpose sought to be served by the action and the temporary injunetional order has been accomplished. But he suggested that the injunetional order should be continued in force so as to prevent any recurrence of acts by the defendant which would result in obstruction of the watercourse.
It appears, therefore, that the defendant has complied with the order appealed from and that the conditions which the plaintiff alleged existed, and which constituted the basis for his application for the injunctional order, have ceased to exist. In an action for injunctive relief a temporary injunction-may be granted to the plaintiff- to restrain the defendant from the commission or continuance of some act against which the injunctive relief is sought pending the final determination of the case on the merits, when it is necessary.to protect the rights of the plaintiff during the litigation. NDR.C 1943, Sec. 32-0602; Burton v. Walker et al., 13 ND 149, 100 NW 257. Where the reasons for granting the temporary injunction havé ceased to exist and it is not likely that the acts which the injunction sought to prohibit will be renewed the preliminary injunction should be dissolved. 32 CJ 405; 43 CJS 982; 2 High on Injunctions, 4th Ed., Sec. 1495, pp 1492-1493. An injunction will not "be maintained when it is manifest that its continuance would be. useless." 2 High on Injunctions, 4th Ed., Sec. 1495, pp 1492-1493.
"A preliminary injunction will be dissolved when the reasons for granting it have ceased to exist and it can no longer serve any useful purpose; and this is so, although the injunction will do no harm to defendant. So, where acts have been discontinued, against which injunction is sought, and there is no evidence of any intention to renew them, the injunction will not be continued." 43 CJS p 982, Sec 242.
It is well settled that ordinarily-an appeal will be dismissed if the question presented by it has become moot or academic or if without any fault of the appellee an event has occurred which makes a determination of it unnecessary. 3 Am Juris Appeal and Error, p 309; 4 CJ 575; 4 CJS 1945; In re Kaeppler, 7 ND 307, 75 NW 253; Thompson v. Void, 38 ND 569, 165 NW 1076; Mills v. Green, 159 US 651, 40 L ed 293; Heinemeyer et al. v. Mercer County, 52 ND 720, 204 NW 182; Lindlaugh v. Grassland School District, 55 ND 515, 214 NW 802; State ex rel. Anderson v. Sieg, 63 ND 724, 249 NW 714; Dakota Coal Co. v. Fraser, 267 F 130; Dickson v. Lord et al., 58 SD 643, 238 NW 21; California v. San Pablo etc. Co., 149 US 314, 37 L ed 747; Stamper et al. v. Alice State Bank & Trust Co., Tex CA, 198 SW 604; U. S. v. Hamburg-Amerikanische Co., 239 US 466, 60 L ed 387; Heitmuller v. Stokes, 256 US 359, 65 L ed 991. And generally compliance with a judgment or order necessitates a dismissal of the appeal therefrom. 4 CJ 579, Sec 2388; 4 CJS 1955; Heinemeyer et al. v. Mercer County, supra.
Under the facts as frankly conceded by counsel in open court (California v. San Pablo etc. Co., supra) the defendant has fully complied with the provisions of the order appealed from, the reasons for granting the temporary injunction have ceased to exist, and there exists no valid reason for continuing in force the temporary injunction as the relief sought to be obtained thereby has been obtained and there is no reason to anticipate that the acts which the plaintiff sought to have prohibited will be renewed. While the appeal has become moot it does not necessarily follow that it should be dismissed as has been suggested by .plaintiff's counsel. While in the circumstances there are no issues on the merits of the appeal to decide, there yet "remains to be determined what our order should be with reference" to the order appealed from, and while "our conclusion on such subject must be reached without at all considering the merits" of the appeal "we are at liberty to make such order as is 'most consonant to justice, in view of the conditions and circumstances of the ease.' " U. S. v. Hamburg-Amerikanische Co., supra; Heitmuller v. Stokes, supra. A dismissal of the appeal would affirm the order and continue .the temporary iii-junction in force although under the admitted facts the reasons for granting it have ceased to exist and it can n'o longer serve any useful purpose. In the circumstances of the case we think that the appeal should hot be dismissed but that the cause should be remanded to the trial court with directions to dissolve the' temporary injunction and dismiss the proceedings instituted by the order to show cause. Cullen et al. v. Ellis County Levee Imp. Dist. No. 3, Tex CA, 77 SW2d 310; Simmons v. Board of Education, 61 ND 212, 237 NW 700; U. S. v. Hamburg-Amerikanische Co., supra; Heitmuller v. Stokes, supra; 2 Ency., Pl. & Pr., p 344, Note 3.
It is, therefore, ordered that the ease be remanded to the district court with directions to dissolve the temporary injunc tional order from which, the appeal was taken and dismiss the proceedings instituted by the order to show cause.
Nuessle, C. J., Morris, Burke and Grimson, J«J., concur.