Field v. Guilford Water Co.

• Decision Date: 03 May 1906
• Court: Connecticut Supreme Court
• Parties: FIELD et al. v. GUILFORD WATER CO.

63 A. 723

79 Conn. 70

FIELD et al.

v. GUILFORD WATER CO.

Supreme Court of Errors of Connecticut.

May 3, 1906.

Appeal from Court of Common Pleas, New Haven County; William L. Bennett, Judge.

Action by J. Nelson Field and another against the Guilford Water Company to recover a tax assessed by the town of Guilford on defendant's pipes and piping underground, water mains, and hydrants at a valuation of $25,000. A judgment was rendered in favor of defendant on demurrer to the complaint, from which plaintiffs appeal. Affirmed.

It appeared from the writ and complaint that the defendant is a corporation having a principal place of business in the town of Clinton, and for the purpose of determining the sufficiency of the demurrer the following facts were by stipulation regarded as incorporated in the complaint, namely: "The Guilford Water Company is a corporation organized under the laws of this state for the purpose of furnishing water to the towns of Clinton, Guilford, and other nearby towns. It is located, and its main works, reservoir, office, and principal place of doing business are, in the town of Clinton. It has no establishment, reservoir, or supply works in the town of Guilford. The pipes and water mains extend from Clinton into Guilford, and the pipes, etc., in question, are connected with the reservoir in Clinton, and were laid underground in the usual manner for the purpose of supplying the inhabitants of Guilford with water. They are laid under the public highways, and the water company is not the owner of the lands upon which they are laid and through which they extend."

William H. Ely, for appellants. Charles A. Pelton, for appellee.

HAMERSLEY, J. (after stating the facts). There is no provision in the General Statutes of 1902 for the listing, assessing, and taxing of property owned by stock corporations, except those special provisions contained in the sections dealing with a taxation of different classes of corporations. The only provision for taxing the property of corporations such as the defendant corporation is contained in sections 2328 and 2329, which in substance provide: The whole property in this state of the corporation shall be set in its list and liable to taxation in the same manner as the property of individuals, and its real estate shall be set in the list of the town in which such real estate is situated, and its personal property shall be set in the list of the town in which it has its principal place of business or exercises its corporate powers, and when it shall have two or more establishments for transacting its business in different towns or taxing districts it shall be assessed and...