California Surveyors Forums

Greetings I am wondering what all of your thoughts are on this similar situation:


Late last year, my area was hit by strong winds. some damage was done to property etc.


NOW for the past few months, I have received calls from owners who all state the their neighbor replaced the fence and placed it in the wrong spot.

So Far EVERY ONE of their stories state that they themselves didn't have money to pay for the new fence so their neighbor paid for it but placed it wrong. (didn't have it surveyed) etc.

NOW all of these so-called broke people want to sue their neighbors and are relying on a Surveyor to lead the charge.

The question is . . .do any of these people stand a chance in court, of winning the case and force the neighbor to move the fence ?

Yes.

they could stand a chance, how much of a chance? Who knows?

A lot depends on whether these broke people told the neighbor who built the fence not to build it until it was surveyed. There is a term called "estoppel" that can preclude any actions that people take against another.

If these broke people didn't have an opportunity to voice displeasure in the location of the fence, well that could be a different story.

But this is just a guess on my part.

GoodGPS,

Did the neighbours get notified 30 days in advance of the new fence being installed as required by the change to Civil Code 841?

Darth Vader

Philanthropic sentiments aside, you are a professional land surveyor, not a fence building consultant. Don't even go there.

And remember Woody Guthrie:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-qCpFn1iIqk

Darth Vader wrote:GoodGPS,

Did the neighbours get notified 30 days in advance of the new fence being installed as required by the change to Civil Code 841?

Darth Vader

I believe the 30 day notice only applies if you are intending to have your neighbor share in the cost of construction or maintenance. Building a fence in the wrong location is a separate issue.

I don't know why people don't just put their fences back in the same location. It's easy to tell where the posts were, just look for the holes in the ground.

LS8750

lol That is funny. My son went out with me on a PL dispute when he was a teen, on the way back in he started singing "this land is my land and its not your land . . .if you dont get off, I'll blow your head off . . . . . .

I almost drove off the road.

And YES, I do not offer legal advice to these people Only a proper survey and perhaps an exhibit plat. Usually Attorneys or Judges will request surveys and exhibit plats when a situation goes to litigation.

Thanks for all the fed back. So far my fees have been too high for these jobs

I like how the potential client doesn't have the funds for a survey, but they want to spend a lot of money to sue thy neighbor! Looks to be another chapter of Fear Thy Neighbor in the works.

Probably a good call not getting involved in this one, or charge extra to cover unforseen time cause we all know you will spend additional time explaining your view.

Oh Bruce,

I forgot to mention that Lawyers and Judges often use the term "Laches" in place of "estoppel" Just thought I'd mention that in case anyone cared.

laches ...

OOPS Tyank you Warren
wait !! Thank you where is auto correct when I need it @!!

Your two funny!

phunnie

Too broke to build a fence?

Sounds like the real question isn't whether they stand a chance in court, it's whether you stand a chance of being paid.

If it were me, I'd be tempted to ask "If you can't afford half a fence, how do you propose to pay for a full survey?"

I've known surveyors who would make it part of the deal that an intent to lien is filed upon execution of the contract, and then if payment is not made, the lien is filed and the costs of placing the lien and of clearing it are added to the bill.

I haven't done that myself, so am not familiar with the full process or timeframe requirements. I would learn it before dealing with would be litigious broke people though.