Taylor v. Inhabitants of Town of Caribou

• Decision Date: 08 February 1907
• Citation: 67 A. 2,102 Me. 401
• Parties: TAYLOR v. INHABITANTS OF TOWN OF CARIBOU.
• Court: Maine Supreme Court

67 A. 2

102 Me. 401

TAYLOR

v. INHABITANTS OF TOWN OF CARIBOU.

Supreme Judicial Court of Maine.

Feb. 8, 1907.

Report from Supreme Judicial Court Aroostook County.

Appeal by Albert J. Taylor from the decision of the assessors the inhabitants of the town of Caribou refusing to make an abatement of plaintiff's taxes. Case reported. Judgment for plaintiff.

The "petition for appeal," omitting formal parts, is as follows:

"Respectfully represents Albert J. Taylor, of Caribou, in said county of Aroostook, that on a certain day, to wit, the 15th day of April, 1905, in accordance with the notification by the assessors of taxes of the town of Caribou, aforesaid, for the year 1905, he seasonably made, subscribed, and presented to said assessors a true and perfect list of his polls and of his estate, real and personal, not by law exempt from taxation, of which he was possessed on the first day of April, 1905, and then and there offered to make oath to the truth of the same.

"Yet the said assessors, in making the assessment for the year 1905, wholly disregarded and ignored the list aforesaid, and assessed your petitioner for money at interest, assessing on said money at interest a tax of twenty-three dollars and ten cents ($23.10); whereas in truth and in fact your petitioner owed debts on said 1st day of April, 1905, In excess of all money said petitioner had at interest and all debts due him on that day.

"And said petitioner further avers that afterwards, to wit, on the 23d day of December, 1905, he made written application to said assessors for an abatement of said tax of twenty-three dollars and ten cents ($23.10), being the amount of tax assessed against said petitioner for the year 1905, for money at interest. And in said application your petitioner stated the grounds on which he asked for this abatement, to wit, that he owed debts on said first day of April, 1905, in excess of all money he had at interest, and all debts due him, the said petitioner.

"And the said assessors declined to make any abatement as requested by your petitioner, and on the 36th day of December, 1905, gave your petitioner written notice to this effect.

"And your petitioner further avers that afterwards, to wit, on the 16th day of February, 1906, your petitioner, in order to prevent distress of his property, paid under protest to Charles F. Ross, tax collector of the town of Caribou aforesaid, the said tax of twenty-three dollars and ten cents ($23.10).

"Wherefore, your petitioner appeals from said decision of said assessors, and prays that he may be relieved by the court from said tax, and that he may be reimbursed out of the town treasury the amount of this abatement, and that judgment for the amount of this abatement shall be rendered against the town of Caribou aforesaid, and for the costs of suit, and that execution may be issued therefor."

The matter came on for hearing at the September term, 1906, Supreme Judicial Court, Aroostook county, at which time an "agreed statement" of the following tenor was filed:

"In the above-entitled case the parties thereto agree to submit the same to the law court upon an agreed statement of facts, which agreed statement of facts is as follows:

"That on the 1st day of April, A. D. 1905, the day on which the petitioner was assessed for taxes, the plaintiff was a resident of the town of Caribou. That the assessors of said town of Caribou were legally chosen and qualified. That all due and legal proceedings were had by the said assessors in relation to giving notice in writing to the inhabitants of said town of Caribou, to make and bring in to them, true and perfect lists of their polls and all their estates, real and personal, not by law exempt from taxation, of which they were possessed on the 1st day of April of that year. That the plaintiff seasonably and in accordance with the notification by the assessors of taxes for the year 1905 made, subscribed, and presented to said assessors a list of his polls and estate of which be claimed he was possessed on the 1st day of April, A. D. 1905, and then and there offered to make oath to the truth of the same.

"That the said assessors of the town of Caribou duly assessed the plaintiff for money at interest, as set forth in the petition for appeal, which may be copied and referred to by either party. That the plaintiff on the 1st day of April, A. D. 1905, and at the time of the said assessment, had, and was possessed of, the amount of money at interest for which he was taxed. That on the same day the plaintiff owed debts which amounted to as much, or more than he had money at interest upon which the tax was laid.

"It is further agreed that the plaintiff seasonably took an appeal after the assessors of said town of Caribou declined to make any abatement and gave due and proper notice of his appeal; that the plaintiff there afterwards, to wit, on February 16th A. D. 1906, in order to prevent distress of his property, paid, under protest, to the collector of the town of Caribou the said tax assessed by said assessors upon money at interest, which tax amounted to twenty-three dollars and ten cents ($23.10); and tills suit is for the recovery of that sum, being the amount of tax so assessed against this plaintiff.

"The parties agree to limit the issue in this case to the question as to whether on the above agreed statement of facts the plaintiff could be legally assessed for money at interest within the meaning of chapter 9, section 5, and other tax laws of the Revised Statutes. If the plaintiff could be legally taxed under the above statement of facts, the town of Caribou is to prevail in tills suit; but, if the petitioner could not be legally taxed for money at interest under the above statement of facts, then the plaintiff is to prevail."

The case was then reported to the law court as agreed.

Argued before EMERY, C. J., and WHITE-HOUSE, SAVAGE, POWERS, PEABODY, and SPEAR, JJ.

Albert B. Donworth and Charles Carrol, for plaintiff. Foster & Foster and Eugene A. Holmes, for defendants.

POWERS, J. Appeal to the Supreme Judicial Court, under Rev. St. c. 9, §§ 79, 80, 81, from the decision of the assessors of Caribou refusing to make an abatement of the appellant's taxes. The case comes before the law court on report, and presents a single question for determination. The appellant seasonably made, subscribed, and presented to the...