Stanford v. City & County of San Francisco

Citations

• 111 Cal. 198
• 43 P. 605
• 1896 Cal. LEXIS 566

Syllabus

<p>Municipal Corporations—Street Improvements—Flooding Private Property—Accumulation of Surface Water—Liability of City. Municipal corporations are liable in damages for their action in constructing streets, sewers, and drains in such a manner that the surface water of a large territory, which did not naturally flow in that direction, is gathered into a body and precipitated upon private premises to the injury of the owner.</p> <p>Id.—Construction of Sewer — Duty of City—Cesspools—Improvement of Street.—The rule that there is no duty imposed by law upon a city to construct cesspools in connection with a sewer is subject to the proviso that the improvement of the street by the city does not create the necessity for cesspools; and where, by the paving of the street in connection with the absence of cesspools, surface water, which before sank in the sand, is made to accumulate above the grade of the street to the injury of private owners, instead of being discharged into the sewer, the city is liable for the resulting damage.</p> <p>Id.—Negligence of City—Findings—Probative Facts—Ultimate Fact. Where the court has found all the probative facts from which negligence of the city is shown, such negligence need not be expressly found as an ultimate fact.</p> <p>Id.—Action for Damages — Evidence — Putting in Cesspools Subsequent to Overflow—Harmless Ruling.—In an action for damages against the city for causing the overflow of plaintiff’s premises, the admission of evidence that, subsequent to the overflow complained of, the city put in cesspools, for the purpose of showing that the flooding of plaintiff’s premises could have been avoided by that means, if erroneous is harmless, it appearing that without such evidence the result must have been the same.</p>