Court Opinion

ID: 9853334
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 05:46:46.539173+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:22:45.833540
License: Public Domain

HOLMAN, J.,
concurring.
The purpose of the regulation requiring a report to the state engineer is to make sure that wells are drilled in conformance with other regulations of the state engineer which are adopted for the protection of the water supply of persons who might subsequently dwell upon the land. Had a true report been filed by defendant, the state engineer would have required him to comply with the regulations concerning the casing of the well and would have informed the owners of the property of his lack of compliance.
As a result, had the report not been falsified, the failure to comply with the regulations concerning the casing of the well would have been rectified, the well would not have been contaminated, and plaintiffs would not have suffered their damage. Plaintiffs were within the class of persons sought to be protected by the regulation requiring the filing of the report and were damaged as the result of defendant’s falsification.
Plaintiffs’ complaint alleged all that was necessary for recovery — the failure to comply with the regulations concerning the casing of the well, the filing of the false report, the contamination of the well as the result of the failure to case the well, and resultant damages.