Western Union Tel. Co. v. Kennedy
Western Union Tel. Co. v. Kennedy
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
Appellant filed its bill of complaint in the chancery court of Lauderdale county, praying that the tax collector be enjoined from collecting certain taxes assessed to appellant on a certain telegraph pole line along the right of way of the New Orleans & Northeastern Railroad Company, between Meridian, in this, state and the Louisiana boundary line. The bill alleges that the property in question belonged to the railroad company and not to the complainant; that complainant appeared before the Railroad Commission “and protested that it whs not the owner of said poles,” but was merely operating a line of wires on said poles under a lease contract with the owners thereof. The tax collector answered the bill, and much testimony was heard by the court upon the question of the ownership of the pole line.
"We do not think it is necessary to discuss the question of ownership of the property upon which the assessment was levied, for the reason that this question of fact was threshed out before and determined by the Railroad Commission, if the allegations of the bill of complaint are to be taken as true. Looking to the case made by the bill, it appears that the Railroad Commission had under consideration the assessment of the pole line and to whom it should be assessed. The Commission assessed the property to appellant as owner thereof, and no direct appeal by certiorari was taken by appellant, but appellant invoked the aid of the chancery court.
Affirmed„
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Western Union Tel. Co. v. Kennedy, Sheriff
- Cited By
- 6 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- Taxation. Enjoining collection. Grounds. Under Code 1906, section 533, providing that the chancery court shall have jurisdiction of suits by taxpayers to restrain the collection of any taxes levied without authority of law, where a railroad commission, after investigating the question of ownership of a telegraph line along a railroad right of way, assessed it against the telegraph company and that company took no appeal to the circuit court by certiorari, the chancery court had no jurisdiction to enjoin the collection of the tax so assessed, even though the telegraph company did not in fact own such line, since the judgment of the railroad commission was valid on its face and whether justified or not, the exclusive remedy was by certiorari to the circuit court.