Farmers Mutual Telephone Ass'n v. Pacific Gas & Electric Co.

In this action the parties seek a declaration of their respective rights in a pole line which is used by all three of them. Feeling aggrieved by the judgment, plaintiff has appealed.

In 1909 plaintiff acquired a franchise under the provisions of section 536 of the Civil Code as it then existed to operate a *103 telephone service in Kern County. It thereupon erected and maintained a pole line, installed telephone wires thereon and operated a rural telephone system. In 1950 defendant Pacific Gas and Electric Company (hereinafter referred to as PG&E) was erecting a pole line in Kern County, a portion of which was to run along the north side of McKee Road between Wibel and Stine Roads where plaintiff had some poles. After some preliminary negotiations, PG&E, which had a franchise to operate in Kern County, offered by letter, dated May 29, 1950, to install a new line of poles where plaintiff had its poles and to grant plaintiff a free contact thereon. The specific proposal was as follows:

Plaintiff accepted this offer by letter dated June 14, 1950, reading in part as follows:

Thereafter PG&E removed plaintiff’s poles and erected a new pole line and transferred plaintiff’s wires to…