Metropolitan Park District v. Unknown Heirs of Rigney
Supreme Court of Washington
399 P.2d 516 (1965)
In 1884, John Rigney and his wife conveyed land to the Tacoma Light and Water Company (TLW) on condition that it be used to supply water to Tacoma, with a right of reentry reserved for Rigney or his heirs if that use ever stopped. In 1905, the City of Tacoma, as TLW's successor, stopped using the property for water supply and began using it as a park instead. In 1951, the Metropolitan Park District (plaintiff) took over as owner and continued park use. More than ten years later, the Park District sued to quiet title, and Rigney's heirs (defendants) counterclaimed that the condition had been breached back in 1905 and the property should revert to them. The trial court quieted title in the Park District, and some of Rigney's heirs appealed.
Whether a grantor's right to declare forfeiture after breach of a condition subsequent expires if the grantor fails to exercise that right within a reasonable time.