State of Mississippi Robertson v. Miller, 206

• Decision Date: 20 February 1928
• Docket Number: No. 206,206
• Citation: 48 S.Ct. 266,276 U.S. 174,72 L.Ed. 517
• Parties: STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, for Use of ROBERTSON, v. MILLER et al
• Court: U.S. Supreme Court

276 U.S. 174

48 S.Ct. 266

72 L.Ed. 517

STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, for Use of ROBERTSON,

v MILLER et al.

No. 206.

Argued Jan. 20, 1928.

Decided Feb. 20, 1928.

Mr. Stokes V. Robertson, of Jackson, Miss., for petitioner.

Mr. Marion W. Reily, of Meridian, Miss., for defendant.

Mr. Justice BUTLER delivered the opinion of the Court.

The record presents for decision the question whether, as applied in this case, chapter 170, Laws 1924, amending section 7068 of Hemingway's Annotated Code of Mississippi contravenes the clause of section 10 of article 1 of the Constitution, which declares that no state shall pass any law impairing the obligtion of constracts.

The suit was brought by the state, in the circuit court of Hinds county, for the use of Robertson, hereinafter called plaintiff, who in 1923 and prior years had been the state revenue agent. It is against his immediate successor in office, Miller, whom we shall call defendant, and the surety on his official bond. The purpose is to recover commissions on certain amounts collected by defendant on account of past-due taxes for which plaintiff while in office had brought suits. Plaintiff claims under statutory provisions that were in force while he was in office, and defendant claims under the act here in question, which was passed after the expiration of plaintiff's term. Section 7056 of the Code authorized the state revenue agent to appoint deputies and to sue for past-due taxes. Section 7066 declared:

'Neither the state nor any county, municipality, or levee board shall be chargeable with any fees or expenses on account of any investigation or suit made or instituted by the state revenue agent; and he shall not receive any salary; but he shall be entitled to retain, as full compensation for his services and expenses, twenty per centum of all amounts collected and paid over by him. * * *'

Section 7068 directed the successor to allow suits theretofore commenced to be conducted in his name and provided that:

'The person who commenced the suit shall pay all attorney's fees and expenses thereof, and receive the commissions, if any.'

Acting under these sections, plaintiff appointed deputies to assist in making collections and agreed to pay them one-half the commission allowed by law. He employed an attorney to bring suits and agreed to pay him one-fourth of such sommissions. There remained a fourth for plaintiff, 5 per cent. of the amounts collected. Certain suits which were brought by plaintiff to collect past-due income taxes and privilege taxes, were pending when his term expired. He notified defendant of the agreements he had made with his deputies and attorney. Some amounts sued for remained unpaid until after the passage of chapter 170 on February 29, 1924. That act amends section 7068. Section 1 authorizes every suit brought by the outgoing agent and then pending to be conducted in the name of the successor upon the motion and petition of the latter directed to the court showing that he has investigated its merits and believes it is just and should be maintained, and the section declares that contracts of the former agent with his attorneys and employees shall be binding on the successor. Section 2 provides that:

'The expenses of all suits where the successor of the revenue agent has joined therein as above provided shall be paid by them equally and all fees and commission legally derived thereform shall be shared equally between them.'

After the passage of that act, there was paid by various taxpayers to the defendant $9,784.07, on account of past-due taxes claimed in suits brought by plaintiff. It does not appear that defendant took any step to have any of these suits carried on; but, claiming to be entitled to a part of them under chapter 170, he refused to pay over the commissions for the use of plaintiff, his deputies and attorney. Then plaintiff brought this suit to recover 5 per cent. of the amount so collected by defendant, that being the portion of the commissions remaining for him after deducting the amounts which his deputies and attorney were entitled to have under their agreements with him. The circuit court gave plaintiff judgment for one-half the amount sued for. He appealed to the Supreme Court, and there contended that, if applied in this case chapter 170 would impair the contract obligation of the state that he be paid for services rendered before its enactment, and would therefore violate the contract clause of the Federal Constitution. The court overruled his contention, applied the enactment retroactively, and affirmed the judgment. 144 Miss. 614, 109 So. 900.

If chapter 170 had not been passed, plaintiff, his deputies, and attorney would have been entitled to 20 per cent. of the amounts collected by defendant. Under the statutes in force in 1923, the commissions were earned by the investigation to discover past-due taxes and the institution of suits to coerce delinquent taxpayers, and such commissions became payable upon the collection of taxes sued for. In its opinion in this case, the Supreme Court said (page 623 (109 So. 903)):

'It is the law, as contended by appellant, that, where the revenue agent brings a suit for taxes due the state or any of its political subdivisions, and afterwards the taxes are paid by the defendant taxpayer, the revenue agent is entitled to the commissions allowed him by the statute'-citing Garrett v. Robertson, 120 Miss. 731, 83 So. 177; Robertson v. Shelton, 127 Miss. 360, 90 So. 83; Miller v. Henry, 139 Miss. 651, 103 So. 203; Miller v. Johnson, 144 Miss. 201, 109 So. 715.

And chapter 170 did not operate to take from plaintiff's...