Commonwealth Trust Co. v. Smith
Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Appeal from District Court of the United States for the Southern Division of the District of Idaho; Frank S. Dietrich, Judge. Suit by the Commonwealth Trust Company of Pittsburgh, as trustee, against Max Smith and Margaret Smith. From a decree dismissing the suit for failure to make other parties defendants, plaintiff appeals. This is a suit to foreclose a lien upon certain water rights and privileges and the real property to which they are appurtenant.
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Appeal from District Court of the United States for the Southern Division of the District of Idaho; Frank S. Dietrich, Judge. Suit by the Commonwealth Trust Company of Pittsburgh, as trustee, against Max Smith and Margaret Smith. From a decree dismissing the suit for failure to make other parties defendants, plaintiff appeals. This is a suit to foreclose a lien upon certain water rights and privileges and the real property to which they are appurtenant. It is necessary to understand the controlling issues presented by the pleadings for an intelligent solution of the problem involved. The bill…
1Opinion of the Court
WOLVERTON, District Judge.
The single question presented by the appeal is whether the contract holders or the persons claiming .water rights or interests in the lands comprised by the project or irrigation system are indispensable parties to the suit, so that the court is unable to proceed in their absence without injuriously affecting them in their rights and privileges. If this is merely a proceeding for the foreclosure of a mortgage lien, and nothing more, then it may confidently be premised that the other contract holders within the project should not be required to be brought in, because…
2Cases cited9 opinions
- Shields v. BarrowSupreme Court of the United States · 1855
- Stewart v. United StatesSupreme Court of the United States · 1855
- Williams v. BankheadSupreme Court of the United States · 1874
- Dial v. ReynoldsSupreme Court of the United States · 1878
- Peters v. BowmanSupreme Court of the United States · 1878
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3Cited by7 opinions
- Franz v. BuderCourt of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit · 1926
- Commonwealth Trust Co. of Pittsburgh v. SmithSupreme Court of the United States · 1924
- O'Brien v. MarkhamDistrict Court, S.D. California · 1936
- Brian Thixton v. Frank Bisignano, Commissioner of Social SecurityDistrict Court, E.D. California · 2026
- DiGiacinto v. RB Health (US) LLCDistrict Court, N.D. California · 2023
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