10.18 Defenses

• Library: Real Estate Practice Deskbook (2019 Ed.)

c. (§10.18) Defenses

After Heins Implement Co. v. Missouri Highway & Transportation Commission, 859 S.W.2d 681 (Mo. banc 1993), the defenses available to a party defending an action for obstruction or detention of a watercourse are simply assertion of facts that suggest that the action was reasonable under the circumstances. But a few cases in Missouri have suggested that various other defenses have been and may be available depending on the particular circumstances.

The plaintiff's failure to mitigate damages caused to the land by the overflow may be a defense available to a person opposing an obstruction action. Munkres v. Kansas City, St....