Alameda County v. Crocker

Citations

• 125 Cal. 101
• 57 P. 766
• 1899 Cal. LEXIS 808

Syllabus

<p>Condemning Lands fob Highway—General and Special Findings —Reference to Pleadings—Certainty.—In an action to condemn lands for a public highway, a general finding “That all the facts alleged in the complaint are true, except as to those hereinafter specified,” and special findings following, which are inconsistent with certain allegations of the complaint as to all of the property sought to be condemned, and which specifically set forth the ownership, acreage, value, damages, and benefits to the tracts belonging to the defendants, about which any issue was presented, and which covered the entire lands in controversy, are not uncertain or obscure, and necessarily exclude the idea of any ownership in a fictitious defendant named in the complaint, with respect to which no issue was joined.</p> <p>Id.—Defendants Sued by Fictitious Names—Amendment to Complaint—Judgment upon Appeal.—Where defendants sued by fictitious names, were served, and appeared and answered by their true names, the complaint must be amended to insert their true names, but where such amendment was not made, and the specific rights in the land condemned of all persons sued by fictitious names were in fact determined, the absence of the amendment is not ground for ordering a new trial; but the judgment upon appeal will direct the lower court to amend the complaint as of date prior to the judgment, in order to support the judgment.</p> <p>Id—Premature Judgment as to One Defendant — Final Judgment—Vacation—Presumption upon Appeal.—Where the court improperly entered a premature judgment condemning the interest of one defendant not appearing, before other defendants had appeared and answered, and properly included the interest of that defendant in the final judgment of condemnation of the interests of all the defendants, it will be presumed, upon appeal of another defendant, that the court made an order vacating the premature judgment, and such judgment must be deemed harmless as to the appellant.</p> <