Deep Quarries, Inc. owns a quarry in an outer suburb known as Quarryside. The quarry has been there for almost one hundred years. When it was first set up, it was far away from the city, but the outer suburbs of the city have now spread out to it and beyond. Quarryside is an expensive neighborhood, made up of homes set in secluded woodland surroundings.
In the early part of the 20th century, the quarry was very busy, but the increased use of brick and concrete as construction materials has produced a decline in demand for stone from the quarry. For many years, Deep Quarries’ principal business has been cutting and polishing small, high-quality pieces of stone for use in graveyards. It conducted this business without complaint from its increasing number of new neighbors.
Recently, Deep Quarries won a new contract, to provide large boulders to be used in making a breakwater at a yacht club. Work now begins at 7 a.m. each morning. Once a week, explosives are used at regular intervals throughout the day to cut stone from the quarry. Every working day, large trucks carry boulders out of the quarry in a steady stream from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. The noise and dust from the work can be heard and felt throughout the suburb of Quarryside.
Piers lives next to the quarry. He has sued Deep Quarries, seeking an injunction restraining the new use of the quarry. He says that his use and enjoyment of his property has been disturbed by the noise and dust from the quarry. He has also sued for money damages because of damage caused to his home as a result of the blast vibrations. He claims that tiles have fallen from the roof of his house and that windows have been cracked by the blasts.
You are a paralegal employed by the law firm representing Deep Quarries. You have been asked to draft an opinion regarding the potential of the court granting an injunction and regarding the possibility of money damages. Your opinion should address both the torts of trespass and nuisance.
Please use WestlawNext to locate the following cases and incorporate them into your opinion:
Wilson v. Interlake Steel Co., 32 Cal. 3d 229, 649 P.2d 922 (1982)
Bradley v. Am. Smelting & Ref. Co., 104 Wash. 2d 677, 709 P.2d 782 (1985)