Anaheim Union Water Co. v. Fuller

The Santa Ana River ran through land owned by the Anaheim Union Water Company and the Santa Ana Valley Irrigation Company (the water companies) (plaintiffs). The water companies claimed riparian-property rights to divert water from the river to irrigate their lands, which required a continuous minimum flow of water down the river. O. B. Fuller, G. H. Fuller, Fred Zucker, and F. J. Smith (collectively, the water diverters) (defendants) owned land upriver from the water companies where the water diverters had built a dam to divert water to other parcels owned by the water diverters that were not adjoining the river. The other parcels were once part of a large ranch that included the river’s watershed, but the ranch had been subdivided. A different watershed actually fed some of the water diverters’ parcels, whereas the Smith parcel was not contiguous with the Santa Ana River or its watershed. Later, Smith transferred his parcel to the other water diverters to create an apparent connection to the river. The water companies filed suit seeking to enjoin the water diverters from diverting water from the river, claiming that the water diverters were nonriparian and could not interfere with the water companies’ riparian-property rights. The water diverters contended that the Santa Ana River watershed should be interpreted broadly to encompass all tributaries, streams, and other watercourses. The trial court granted the injunction after determining that the water being diverted by the water diverters was used on nonriparian lands. The water diverters appealed to the California Supreme Court.