Parker v. Foote

19 Wend. 309 (1838)

From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Parker v. Foote

New York Supreme Court
19 Wend. 309 (1838)

JC

Facts

Foote (defendant) owned a pair of lots in the village of Clinton, New York. Foote sold one of the lots in 1808 to Joseph Stebbins, who built a dwelling house with windows overlooking the other lot. In 1832, Foote built a store in the alley between the two lots, which filled up the space between the houses and blocked the natural light from Stebbins’s house. Stebbins sold the property to Parker (plaintiff), who filed suit on the basis of blocking the light in a dwelling house, a notion that resided in English common law. The path of the suit essentially evolved into a primitive form of adverse possession, that of presuming a grant. In the absence of any express contractual right to not have the light blocked, Stebbins argued that a claim of right to the unblocked light having been asserted by Stebbins for 20 years, Stebbins was entitled to presume that he had been given such a right. The judge at trial expressed his doubt that the English law regarding stopping the light was valid in a bustling New York village. The judge also declined to instruct the jury as to the issues regarding presumption of a grant and instructed the jury to find for Parker, which the jury did, awarding Parker damages of $225. Foote then appealed, arguing that no one owned the right to unblocked light, so that presumption of that right was irrelevant and that stopping the light was irrelevant in the context of Clinton, New York. Proof had been made that the free window with light had been allowed to Stebbins as a favor, not as a claim of right.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Bronson, J.)

Concurrence (Cowen, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 816,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

Here's why 816,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 816,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership