Brian Carter successfully negotiated a settlement agreement that resolved a long-running dispute between neighbors in a mountainous, residential area of Mendocino County, which dispute boils down to a dispute over water from a spring (which feeds a blue line stream). The recent multi-year drought has exacerbated tensions among neighbors in such areas, and when there is not enough rain, spring output decreases. When spring output decreases below the critical level, neighbors get into fights over who gets what share of the output. In this case, the firm’s clients installed a device on the spring (which is on the clients’ property) to monitor and allocate the spring’s output, but a neighbor – having a less-than-perfectly-documented easement to access the spring – removed the device. Brian Carter filed a complaint for the clients, the neighbors cross-complained, and the suit dragged on for multiple years. The parties ultimately agreed to implement procedures that conform to applicable California water laws, and to resolve the dispute as to the allocation of the spring water and improvements to the spring. The settlement and judgment included the court’s agreement to retain jurisdiction to enforce the settlement agreement pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 664.6, with attorney fees to the party prevailing on any motion to enforce. Drought, wildfires, protection of fish habitat, cannabis cultivation and the flight from urban centers have all recently combined to make living in the hills in Northern California quite a challenge, and will continue to do so. Two things that seem likely to remain true in the future, however, are (1) having a good relationship with your neighbors is exceedingly valuable, and (2) the right to use water from a mountain spring is worth its weight in gold.