Anderson v. Gouldberg

Facts

Plaintiff Anderson cut ninety-three pine logs from trees on a parcel of land, “Section 22”, in Isanti County then hauled them to a mill. Plaintiff did not know who owned the land at Section 22, nor did he have permission to cut the trees on that parcel. In other words, plaintiff obtained possession of the logs by trespassing upon the land of a third party. Defendant Gouldberg subsequently took those logs from the mill, believing that such logs had been cut from Section 26. Section 26 was owned by the Ann River Logging Company, which had directed Gouldberg to take the logs from the mill. Plaintiff brought an action in replevin against Defendant to recover possession of the logs or the value thereof. The court charged the jury with determining whether the logs were cut from Section 22 or Section 26. The jury determined that the logs were cut from Section 22 and found for plaintiff. Defendants appealed from an order denying their motion for a new trial.