Buckman v. Hatch
Buckman v. Hatch
Opinion of the Court
This is an action to foreclose a street assessment. There was no demurrer to the complaint, but defendants answered, and on a trial plaintiff obtained judgment. Defendant Nicol appeals from the judgment, and the record on said appeal consists of the judgment-roll without a bill •of exceptions.
Two points are made by appellant, both directed to the sufficiency of the complaint.
1. It is claimed that it appears from the face of the complaint that the resolution of intention describing the work was insufficient to confer jurisdiction on the board of supervisors, in that it did not show of what materials the cesspools and culverts mentioned therein were to be constructed. The complaint does not contain a copy of the resolution of intention, but the same is set out in the complaint according to its legal effect. We quote from the complaint as follows: “That under and in pursuance of said act approved March 18,1885, and the acts amendatory thereof and supplementary thereof, the following proceedings were duly had and taken, to wit: That on the eighth day of July, 1895, the board of supervisors of said city and county, at a regular meeting thereof, duly made and passed a resolution, to wit, resolution of intention No. 12,603, describing the work, wherein and whereby said board resolved that it was their intention to order the following work in said city and county to be done and improvement to be made,” etc. And further: “Said board of supervisors, deeming that the public interest and convenience required the above-described work to be done, duly gave, and made, and at a regular meeting of said board passed, its order and resolution designated as ‘No. 12,893/ providing for and ordering said work to be done, and thereby duly gave and made its determination to order
Aside from the statute and decisions above cited, and the principle therein laid down, we think that every reasonable presumption may be resorted to to uphold the judgment. No objection having been taken to the complaint by demurrer, and the proceedings upon the trial not appearing in the record, it is not unreasonable to presume that at the trial evidence was given to uphold every allegation of the complaint, whether such allegation was defectively stated in the plead
2. It is also contended that the complaint does not show that the contract fixed the time for the commencement or completion of the work. It does appear from the complaint that the superintendent of streets in his official capacity as such, fixed the time for the commencement of said work at fifteen days from and after the date of said contract, and for the completion thereof at ninety days from the date of said contract. This allegation shows a compliance with section 6 of the Vrooman act, under which these proceedings were had: Stats. 1885, p. 151. It was not necessary that this time be fixed in the contract, for the act does not require that it shall be so fixed: Fletcher v. Prather, 102 Cal. 413, 36 Pac. 658; Buckman v. Ferguson, 108 Cal. 33, 40 Pac. 1057. It is only necessary that within fifteen days .after the execution of the contract the superintendent shall, in writing, authenticated with his official signature, fix the time: Buck-man v. Ferguson, supra. In the absence of a demurrer, the allegation of the complaint as to the fixing of the time is clearly sufficient to sustain the judgment.
We advise that the judgment be affirmed.
We concur: Chipman, C.; Haynes, C.
TEMPLE, J.—I concur in the judgment.
Reference
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- BUCKMAN v. HATCH
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- Syllabus
- Street Improvements.—In Pleading the Determination of a Board of Supervisors as to certain public improvements, it is not necessary to state the facts conferring jurisdiction, but the determination may be pleaded as duly given or made. Street Improvements.—In an Action to Foreclose a Street Assessment, where no objection is taken to the complaint by demurrer, and the proceedings on the trial do not appear in the record, the court on appeal must presume that evidence was given to uphold every allegation of the complaint, whether defectively stated or not, and, to this end, that the original resolution of intention describing the work was put in evidence, and that the resolution contained a full description of the work as required by statute, including a specific description of the materials of which cesspools and culverts were to be constructed. Street Improvements—Time for Work.—Under Vrooman Act, section 6 (Stats. 1885, p. 151), requiring that the superintendent of streets “shall fix the time for the commencement, .... and for the completion of the work under all contracts entered into by him,” it is not necessary that the time be fixed in the contract itself, but only that the superintendent shall in writing, authenticated with his official signature, fix the time.