Opinion ID: 2258725
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Whether the Federal Government Obtained and Conveyed Title to the Small Boat Pool

Text: [¶ 23] [T]he plaintiff in a quiet title action has the burden of proving better title than that of the defendant. Hodgdon v. Campbell, 411 A.2d 667, 671 (Me.1980). To accomplish this goal in the present case, Norton was required to establish a valid chain of title, including a valid taking by condemnation by the United States. The determination of property boundaries based on the language of a deed presents a question of law that we review de novo. McGeechan v. Sherwood, 2000 ME 188, ¶ 24, 760 A.2d 1068, 1075. If the language is ambiguous, the rules of construction apply and the court may examine extrinsic evidence. Id. In such circumstances, we review the trial court's findings regarding extrinsic evidence for clear error. Thompson v. Rothman, 2002 ME 39, ¶ 8, 791 A.2d 921, 924. [¶ 24] There is no question that the federal government may take property through condemnation proceedings. [T]he United States may take property pursuant to its power of eminent domain in one of two ways: it can enter into physical possession of property without authority of a court order; or it can institute condemnation proceedings under various Acts of Congress providing authority for such takings. United States v. Dow, 357 U.S. 17, 21, 78 S.Ct. 1039, 2 L.Ed.2d 1109 (1958). In either instance, title passes to the United States when the owner receives compensation or when the United States deposits the compensation into court. Id. at 21-22, 78 S.Ct. 1039. [¶ 25] In the present case, the federal government employed a condemnation proceeding to obtain title to the land. At the time of the wartime condemnation in the present case, the United States government was operating pursuant to the Second War Powers Act of 1942, Public Law Number 77-507, ch. 199, § 201, 56 Stat. 176, 177 (repealed 1947), which granted the power to the Secretary of the Navy to acquire by purchase, donation, or other means of transfer, or [to] cause proceedings to be instituted in any court having jurisdiction of such proceedings, to acquire by condemnation, any real property, temporary use thereof, or other interest therein ... that shall be deemed necessary, for military, naval, or other war purposes .... A separate Public Law made clear that the Secretary of the Navy was authorized to establish or develop [certain] naval shore activities by the construction of such temporary or permanent public works as he may consider necessary. Act of Apr. 28, 1942, Pub.L. No. 77-531, ch. 250, 56 Stat. 248. The Declaration of Taking Act in effect at the time, Pub.L. No. 71-736, ch. 307, 46 Stat. 1421, required the filing of a declaration of taking that contained, among other things, a description of the land that was sufficient to identify it, a plan showing the land taken, and a statement of the amount estimated for just compensation. Id. [¶ 26] Most defects in a declaration of taking are not fatal to a taking pursuant to the Act. See, e.g., United States v. 125.2 Acres of Land, 732 F.2d 239, 242-43 (1st Cir.1984) (stating that personal notice is not required for a taking to be effective and that takings in advance of compensation do not violate due process); United States v. Haddon, 550 F.2d 677, 680-81 (1st Cir.1977) (stating that a failure of notice does not void the United States' taking, but may give rise to a claim for damages); Long v. Area Manager, Bureau of Reclamation, 236 F.3d 910, 914 (8th Cir.2001) (same). A condemnation may be held to be void, however, if the condemnation court never obtained in rem jurisdiction because of an inaccurate or misleading description and a failure to seize the land. United States v. Chatham, 323 F.2d 95, 100 (4th Cir.1963). It would be establishing a dangerous precedent to permit the Government in a condemnation proceeding, which is purely statutory and strictly construed, to condemn one's property without clearly and unmistakably describing all of that portion sought to be condemned . . .. United States v. 5.324 Acres of Land, 79 F.Supp. 748, 762 (S.D.Cal.1948). [¶ 27] In the present case, the declaration of taking described the condemnation of the upland property and adjacent submerged lands. This description is ambiguous because it does not describe the boundaries of the submerged land or explicitly address the public trust interest also at issue here. When interpreting documents that are ambiguous, it is appropriate to examine extrinsic evidence; we review the factual findings regarding the extrinsic evidence for clear error. McGeechan, 2000 ME 188, ¶ 24, 760 A.2d at 1075; Thompson, 2002 ME 39, ¶ 8, 791 A.2d at 924. [¶ 28] The trial court found that the evidence presented established the United States' occupation of the small boat pool and demonstrated its intention to take it. Specifically, the court found that the small boat pool, set off by Pier H and the breakwater, was guarded and regulated exclusively by the Navy. The trial record amply supports the court's factual finding that, in addition to the language of the condemnation documents, the federal government's occupation of the submerged lands evidences its intention to take the lands. See Thompson, 2002 ME 39, ¶ 8, 791 A.2d at 924. In sum, in light of the Navy's overt sequestration and use of the submerged land, the description of the property to include adjacent submerged lands cannot be regarded as inaccurate or misleading and hence does not run afoul of the Declaration of Taking Act, Pub.L. No. 71-736, ch. 307, 46 Stat. 1421, in effect at the time of the taking. Compare with Chatham, 323 F.2d at 100; United States v. 5.324 Acres of Land, 79 F.Supp. at 762. [¶ 29] Accordingly, the United States did obtain title to the small boat pool through condemnation and could convey it to Norton's father. Through its initial deed and the series of confirmatory deeds that followed, the federal government accomplished this land transfer. Ultimately, however, because Norton, through the present action, seeks to exclude the public from his property, we must also address whether the State's public trust easement in the small boat pool survived the condemnation and subsequent transfer of these submerged lands.