Land O'Lakes Dairy Co. v. Hintzen

• Citation: 31 N.W.2d 474,225 Minn. 535
• Decision Date: 12 March 1948
• Docket Number: No. 34516.,34516.
• Parties: LAND O'LAKES DAIRY CO. v. HINTZEN, County Auditor, et al.
• Court: Minnesota Supreme Court

31 N.W.2d 474

225 Minn. 535

LAND O'LAKES DAIRY CO. v. HINTZEN, County Auditor, et al.

No. 34516.

Supreme Court of Minnesota.

March 12, 1948.

Appeal from District Court, Douglas County; D. M. Cameron, Judge.

Proceeding by Land O' Lakes Dairy Company against P. L. Hintzen, County Auditor, Douglas County, and others to have determined claim that real estate tax was illegal. From an order denying petitioner's motion for amended findings and conclusions or a new trial, the petitioner appeals.

Reversed and remanded with instructions to vacate the order for judgment and dismiss the petition.

Doherty, Rumble, Butler & Mitchell and Harold Jordan, all of St. Paul, for appellant.

Keith L. Wallace, Co. Atty., and R. S. Thornton, City Atty., both of Alexandria, for respondents.

FRANK T. GALLAGHER, Justice.

Appeal from an order denying petitioner's motion for amended findings and conclusions or a new trial.

Petitioner, Land O' Lakes Dairy Company, is a domestic corporation. On June 1, 1946, it filed a petition, based on M.S.A. c. 278, to have determined its claim that the real estate tax for the year 1945 levied against the property described in the proceedings is illegal. The real estate referred to is located in the city of Alexandria, Douglas county, Minnesota. In its petition, petitioner claimed that it had no interest in the property except its right of possession under a lease and option to purchase from the United States. It contends that by virtue of a certain contract between it and the United States dated April 30, 1943, and an amendment thereto, and by virtue of a certain warranty deed and bill of sale from it to the United States dated September 19, 1945, made pursuant to said contract as amended, the United States is and has been continuously since May 1, 1944, the sole and exclusive owner of the property. On May 1, 1944, the assessor for the district in which the premises are located assessed the property, and upon such assessment there has been levied for the year 1945 a tax of $7,474.96. Immediately prior to the filing of the petition, petitioner paid to the county treasurer of Douglas county one-half the taxes assessed against the property as of May 1, 1945, pursuant to the provisions of M.S.A. § 278.03. The matter was heard before the district court on September 12, 1946, but the decision on the petition was not rendered until February 11, 1947. The trial court sustained the tax in full as levied and declared that the property was not exempt.

It is not necessary for the court here to pass upon the merits of the decision of the trial court, for under the language of M.S.A. § 278.03, the court was without jurisdiction to render any decision in the case after November 1, 1946. Section 278.03 provides in part that before filing the petition and as a condition precedent thereto petitioner shall pay to the county treasurer at least 50 percent of the tax levied for such year against the property involved. This was timely done by petitioner. The statute further provides that if the proceedings instituted by the filing of the petition have not been completed before November 1 next following the filing of the petition the petitioner shall pay 50 percent of the remaining unpaid taxes for the current year, or 50 percent of the remaining unpaid taxes based upon the probable value of the property, if the value has been found by the court upon application. This was not done. The statute then provides as follows:

"* * * Failure to make payment of such additional amount shall operate automatically to dismiss the petition and all proceedings thereunder unless such payment is waived by an order of the court upon application as hereinafter provided. The petitioner, upon ten days' notice to the county attorney and to the county auditor, given at least ten days prior to November first, may apply to the court for an order waiving the requirement of such additional payment, upon the same grounds as set forth herein, for relief from the requirement to pay the original 50 per cent of such taxes, except that he must show that the tax may be determined to be less than 75 per cent of the amount levied. The county treasurer shall issue duplicate receipts for such additional payment, one of which shall be filed by the petitioner in such proceeding." (Italics supplied.)

As stated, the record discloses that petitioner made no payment of the additional 50 percent of the...