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FOR PUBLICATION

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANTS: JAMES M. SNYDER Macaulay & Burtch, P.C. Richmond, Virginia MAUREEN E. WARD Wooden & McLaughlin LLP Indianapolis, Indiana

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEES: MARK S. O'HARA Hostetter & O'Hara Brownsburg, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
RIC FLOYD and SUE FLOYD, Appellants-Defendants, vs. JOHN M. INSKEEP and DEB INSKEEP, Appellees-Plaintiffs. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

No. 32A05-0504-CV-212

APPEAL FROM THE HENDRICKS CIRCUIT COURT The Honorable Jeffrey V. Boles, Judge Cause No. 32C01-0405-MI-39

November 22, 2005

OPINION - FOR PUBLICATION

BAILEY, Judge

Case Summary Appellants-Defendants Ric and Sue Floyd (collectively, "Appellants") appeal the trial court's judgment quieting title in favor of Appellees-Plaintiffs John M. and Deb Inskeep (collectively, "Appellees"). We reverse. 1 Issue Appellants raise two issues, which we consolidate and restate as whether the trial court's judgment quieting title in favor of Appellees, under a theory of adverse possession, is clearly erroneous because it relies upon an improper finding of fact, i.e., Finding 11, and, further, because the evidence is insufficient to establish that Appellees substantially complied with Indiana Code Section 32-21-7-1, as required by Fraley v. Minger, 829 N.E.2d 476, 493 (Ind. 2005). Facts and Procedural History This lawsuit is the result of a boundary line dispute between Appellants and Appellees regarding certain real property located between Lots 8 and 10 of the Range Wood Subdivision in Brownsburg, Indiana. The property at issue forms the northern boundary of Lot 8 and the eastern half of the southern boundary of Lot 10 (the "Property"). 2 In 1981, Appellees purchased Lot 10 of the Range Wood Subdivision. Sometime later, Appellants purchased Lot 8 of the Subdivision. Pursuant to the survey plat of the Subdivision, which was recorded on March 23, 1977, a twenty-foot drainage easement lies
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We direct Appellants' attention to Indiana Appellate Rule 46(A)(10), which provides in part: "The brief shall include any written opinion, memorandum of decision or findings of fact and conclusions thereon relating to the issues raised on appeal." The western half of the southern boundary of Lot 10 is contiguous to Lot 9 and Appellees' ownership of

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between Lots 8 and 10, the midpoint of which serves as the lot line between the two properties. Put another way, according to the survey, the drainage easement encroaches ten feet upon the northern border of Lot 8 and ten feet upon the southeastern border of Lot 10. At the time the parties purchased the lots in question, the developer of Range Wood had installed a ten-foot drainage swale in the middle of the drainage easement. After purchasing Lot 10, Appellees built a house upon the land and made various other landscaping improvements. In 1985, Appellees moved onto Lot 10 and began planting rows of hardwood and pine trees on the southern edge of their property. The row of pine trees, which separates Lots 8 and 10, was intended "to serve as a privacy fence." Tr. at 22. Appellees planted the seventy-nine trees at issue immediately north of the drainage swale. In addition to planting and maintaining the trees, Appellees mowed and maintained all of the Property located north of the drainage swale as if it were part of Lot 10. Indeed, Appellees believed that the Property formed the southern border of their lot. At one point, for example, Mr. Inskeep and Mr. Floyd had a discussion about Appellees' pine trees, i.e., the natural fence, and Appellants' "brush pile," as follows: [Counsel:] Okay, uh you originally earlier discussed the thing about him [i.e., Mr. Floyd] saying that your trees were starting to overhang onto his property. When did that discussion occur? That as I recall was prior to 1998 uh 98 when the survey was done uh this brush pile one time prior to that had been uh burned uh he set it on fire and it scorched several of my pine trees and I had a discussion with him that uh, uh the trees were going to survive but I, I had asked him if he'd next time he lit the, the pile if he could make sure the wind was in the correct direction or, or maybe not let

[Mr. Inskeep:]

that parcel through adverse possession is not in dispute.

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the pile get quite so big possibly before he, he burnt it so that my trees would not be damaged and that was the point where he said that my trees were starting to hang onto his property. Id. at 31. In addition, Mr. Inskeep testified that, prior to 1998, Mr. Floyd never used the disputed Property. 3 In June of 1998, Appellants had their property, i.e., Lot 8, surveyed and discovered that their property line extended approximately thirty feet north of the drainage swale. On June 24, 1998, Mr. Floyd notified Mr. Inskeep of such survey and of Appellants' intent to place permanent markers on the Property, in an effort to facilitate future property transfers of Lot 8. In response, Appellees apparently inquired about buying the Property from

Appellants. On May 19, 2004, Appellees filed an action to quiet title against Appellants, alleging that Appellees had acquired the Property through adverse possession. After conducting a

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Mr. Floyd testified, however, that he would mow the Property "interdentally" or occasionally. Tr. at 51. As for Appellants' use of the Property, he also testified: Q Now, when your kids would go up to, you earlier testified, when your kids would go up the, the Quinn legal drain, would they not walk the swale that's shown to the eastside of your lot and, and the eastside of lot ten, going between lots seven and ten? A In that general vicinity yes. Q So actually they weren't just crossing inside Mr. Inskeep's property, they were going up along the eastside of that property? A Well first uh that wasn't Mr. Inskeep's property uh but they would uh obviously they would walk to get back there and they would be on our property and then whatever was there until we got to, to the drain. Q Okay but they, your testimony was really they went up that drain along the eastside of that swale on up through there? A Well I have four kids, uh two of them were sons uh they did anything. I have no idea exactly where they went but I'm sure they were back in that area. We had dogs and the dogs would go back there (inaudible). Q Okay. A So I can't tell you exactly where they went. Id. at 52-53.

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bench trial, the trial court entered judgment in favor of Appellees. In so doing, the trial court made the following, pertinent, findings of fact: 5. At the time the parties purchased the respective lots, a 10 foot drainage swale had been installed . . . by the developer of Rangewood, in the area where the 10 foot drainage easement had been indicated on the plat of Rangewood. This drainage swale was clearly evidence to all, and was the only demonstrative development improvement between Lots 10 and 8 and 9. (Exhibits 2 and 3)[.] ***** 7. [The Inskeeps] exclusively planted many trees in uniformed, planned plantings on all the land north of the drainage swale, some of those trees being hardwood trees intended for future harvest as veneer trees, and thereafter, solely maintained those plantings, mowed and maintained all the ground north of the centerline of the swale, and exclusively enjoyed all that land north of the drainage swale as part of his residential yard. Said maintenance and use have continued to the present day, well over 24 years. (Exhibits 4, 5, 8, 9, 10). ***** 9. In June 1998, a survey was conducted by [the Floyds] which showed that the drainage swale was not the actual lot line between Lot 10 and Lot 8. The actual lot line was 30 to 35 feet north of the swale. Notwithstanding this revelation, [the Inskeeps] continued to exclusively possess, maintain and claim all that area north of the drainage swale as being their property and part of Lot 10. The parties have paid the taxes on the respective Lots as shown on the plat thereof, as called for by the tax duplicates they receive. Over the 24 years, there had been several incidents between [the Inskeeps] and [the Floyds,] where the [Inskeeps] claimed the land to the north of the swale and the trees planted thereon, and the [Floyds] acknowledged such claim and instructed the [Inskeeps] to trim back [their] trees to keep them from overhanging on [the Floyds'] land south of the drainage swale. [The Floyds] had not taken any acts at any time to defeat [the 5

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Inskeeps'] claim to and actual possession of the land south of the drainage swale. 14. The area in dispute is an area of approximately 32 feet in width along the entire north end of Lot 8 as shown on the plat for Rangewood (Exhibit 1).

Appellants' App. at Tab 2. 4 It is from this judgment that Appellants now appeal. Discussion and Decision I. Standard of Review On review of claims tried without a jury, this Court will not set aside the trial court's findings and judgment unless they are clearly erroneous, and we give due regard to the court's ability to assess the credibility of the witnesses. Ind. Trial Rule 52(A); see also Fraley, 829 N.E.2d at 482. A judgment is clearly erroneous when there is "no evidence supporting the findings or the findings fail to support the judgment," and where the trial court applies the wrong legal standard to properly found facts. See Fraley, 829 N.E.2d at 482 (citing Chidester v. City of Hobart, 631 N.E.2d 908, 910 (Ind. 1994) and Yanoff v. Muncy, 688 N.E.2d 1259, 1262 (Ind. 1997)). While findings of fact are reviewed under the clearly erroneous standard, appellate courts do not defer to conclusions of law, which are reviewed de novo. Fobar v. Vonderahe, 771 N.E.2d 57, 59 (Ind. 2002). Where a case presents mixed issues of fact and law, the Indiana Supreme Court has described the review as applying an abuse of discretion standard. Id. (noting that "[a]lthough this is in some sense an issue of law, it is highly fact sensitive
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Appellants maintain that the trial court adopted, verbatim, Appellees' findings of fact and conclusions thereon, which were submitted on March 11, 2005. Appellants have failed, however, to provide us with a copy of the March 11 submission. Thus, to the extent that any error is alleged on that basis, we do not address such error.

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and is subject to an abuse of discretion standard"). Further, in the event that the trial court mischaracterizes findings as conclusions or vice versa, we will look past these labels to the substance of the judgment. Beam v. Wausau Ins. Co., 765 N.E.2d 524, 528 (Ind. 2002), reh'g denied. To determine that a finding or conclusion is clearly erroneous, an appellate court's review of the evidence must leave it with the firm conviction that a mistake has been made. Yanoff, 688 N.E.2d at 1262. II. Analysis On appeal, Appellants argue that the trial court's judgment quieting title in favor of Appellees under the doctrine of adverse possession is clearly erroneous, in part, because Appellees failed to present clear and convincing evidence 5 that they substantially complied with Indiana Code Section 32-21-7-1. 6 That statute, which is commonly referred to as the Indiana adverse possession tax statute, provides: In any suit to establish title to land or real estate, possession of the land or real estate is not adverse to the owner in a manner as to establish title or rights in and to the land or real estate unless the adverse possessor or claimant pays and discharges all taxes and special assessments due on the land or real estate during the period the adverse possessor or claimant claims to have possessed the land or real estate adversely. However, this section does not relieve any adverse possessor or claimant from proving all the elements of title by adverse possession required by law. Ind. Code

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