W. Union Tel. Co. v. Douglas Cnty.

• Decision Date: 17 May 1906
• Citation: 76 Neb. 666,107 N.W. 985
• Parties: WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH CO. v. DOUGLAS COUNTY ET AL.
• Court: Nebraska Supreme Court

76 Neb. 666

107 N.W. 985

WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH CO.

v.DOUGLAS COUNTY ET AL.

Supreme Court of Nebraska.

May 17, 1906.

Syllabus by the Court.

An action in equity will not lie when the plaintiff has a plain, adequate, and speedy remedy at law.

The statute affords a plain, adequate, and speedy remedy to one whose property has been excessively valued for taxation and in cases in which the county board of equalization has committed prejudicial errors or irregularities in procedure.

Commissioners' Opinion. Department No. 1. Appeal from District Court, Douglas County; Sutton, Judge.

Action by the Western Union Telegraph Company against the County of Douglas and Robert O. Fink, County Treasurer. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendants appeal. Reversed, and action dismissed.

W. W. Slabaugh and A. H. Murdock, for appellants.

W. W. Morsman and F. A. Brogan, for appellee.

AMES, C.

In May, 1904, the county assessor of Douglas county delivered to appellee a printed notice accompanied by a blank form requiring it to make and return a statement for the purposes of assessment and taxation showing in detail the description and amount or value of its tangible personal property situate in the county and also “gross receipts for the year, representing franchise valuation as per detailed statement on back.” The president of the company made a return under oath showing the amount in value of such personal property to be $20,208.90, and of such gross receipts $27,092.29 and computing the two items as a “total personal” of $47,301.19. Substantially this latter amount the assessor returned as his own valuation for the purposes of taxation of the personal property and franchises of the appellee. Subsequently, the county clerk by direction of the county board served the appellee with a written notice to the effect that complaint had been made that its assessment of personalty was too low, and requiring it to appear before the board at the office of the latter on a day and hour named “and show cause, if any there be, why said assessment should not be raised.” At the time and place named in the latter mentioned notice the company did appear by its manager and such proceedings were had and done that the board caused to be entered upon its records in connection with the proceedings the words “Raised to $77,300.” In due time the clerk extended the assessment as thus raised upon his tax list showing the “assessed value” of the personalty of the company to be $15,460 instead of $9,460 as returned by the assessor, and taxes were levied on the former sum in the amount of $477. But before the tax became due this court had held in Western Union Telegraph Co. v. City of Omaha, 103 N. W. 84, that so much of the revenue act of 1903, as requires the gross receipts of the company to be taken as the measure of the value of its franchises is unconstitutional...