Flagg v. Marion County

• Decision Date: 01 May 1897
• Citation: 31 Or. 18,48 P. 693
• Parties: FLAGG et al. v. MARION COUNTY.
• Court: Oregon Supreme Court

48 P. 693

31 Or. 18

FLAGG et al. v. MARION COUNTY.

Supreme Court of Oregon

May 1, 1897

Appeal from circuit court, Marion county; George H. Burnett, Judge.

Action by Flagg & Cronise against Marion county on a contract. Judgment for defendant on demurrer to the complaint, and plaintiffs appeal. Reversed.

W.H. Holmes, for appellants.

S.L Hayden, Dist. Atty., and G.G. Bingham, for respondent.

BEAN J.

This is an action against Marion county to recover a balance of $290 alleged to be due the plaintiffs for printing election ballots. The plaintiffs allege in their complaint that in May, 1894, they were employed by the clerk of the defendant county to print 60,000 election ballots, for the agreed and stipulated sum of $700; that they duly performed their contract, and presented a bill for the sum stipulated to the county court for payment, but that the same has not been paid, or any part thereof except the sum of $410, and judgment is demanded for the balance. A demurrer to the complaint, on the ground that it did not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action, being sustained the plaintiffs appeal.

The argument in support of the ruling of the court below is (1) that while a county clerk may, under the law, contract for the printing of election ballots, he has no authority to bind the county by an agreement as to the price to be paid therefor, and hence this action should have been on a quantum meruit, and not for an agreed compensation; and (2) that plaintiffs are estopped from maintaining the action.

By section 47 of what is commonly known as the "Australian Ballot Law" it is provided that "the county clerk of each county shall cause to be printed, according to law all the ballots required under the provisions of this act and shall furnish the same in the manner hereinafter provided for the use of all electors in the county"; and section 20 provides that "each county court shall audit and pay out of the county treasury such fees as the services performed by the county clerk and the sheriff, under this act, are, in the judgment of the county court, reasonably worth; also such other necessary expenses as are incurred by such officers in carrying out the provisions of this act." It thus appears that the county clerk is required to provide the requisite number of election ballots, and the county court to pay the necessary expenses incurred by him in so doing. By the law, the clerk is made the sole agent of the county for the purpose designated, and therefore has implied authority to make whatever contract or contracts may reasonably be necessary to enable him to perform the duty required of him. The rule is everywhere recognized that every delegation of authority to an agent carries with it the power to do all things which are necessary, proper, usual, and reasonable to be done in order to effectuate the purpose for which the agency was created. Thus, it is held that power conferred upon a committee to...