Title: City of Burlington v. Town of Elon College

State: north-carolina

Issuer: North Carolina Supreme Court

Document:

314 S.E.2d 534 (1984) 310 N.C. 723 CITY OF BURLINGTON, North Carolina v. The TOWN OF ELON COLLEGE, North Carolina. No. 449PA83. Supreme Court of North Carolina. April 30, 1984. *536 Robert M. Ward, City Atty., Burlington, for plaintiff-appellant/appellee. Bateman & Stedman by Charles L. Bateman, Burlington, for defendant-appellant/appellee. BRANCH, Chief Justice. The sole issue presented in this case is whether the trial court erred in concluding that the Town of Elon College prevailed in its annexation of the areas which had been included in the City of Burlington's proposed *537 annexation plan. This issue relies, in turn, on the applicability of the "prior jurisdiction" rule to this dispute. The doctrine of prior jurisdiction is discussed in 2 McQuillin, Municipal Corporations § 7.22a (3d ed. 1966), which reads, in pertinent part, as follows: We note at the outset that the prior jurisdiction rule is the majority rule and is applied "universally" in "conflicts between two municipalities attempting to assert jurisdiction over the same territory." [1] Comment, Municipal Corporations: Prior Jurisdiction Rule, 7 W.F.L.Rev. 77, 79 (1970). See e.g., People v. Town of Corte Madera, 115 Cal. App. 2d 32, 251 P.2d 988 (1952); City of Daytona Beach v. City of Port Orange, 165 So. 2d 768 (Fla.App.1964); Town of Clive v. Colby, 255 Iowa 483, 123 N.W.2d 331 (1963); City of Lincolnshire v. Highbaugh Realty Co., 278 S.W.2d 636 (Ky.1955). Additionally, we recognize that the prior jurisdiction rule is based upon priority in time and "ordinarily is determined by the time of the commencement or initiation of the proceedings, and not by the time of completion thereof." 2 McQuillin, supra at 378. The time of commencement of proceedings, for purposes of the rule, is the "taking of the first mandatory public procedural step in the statutory process for... annexation of territory." Id. Applying the foregoing principles to the facts of the instant case leads inevitably and indisputably to the conclusion that the plaintiff City of Burlington, by adopting its Resolution of Intent to Annex on 19 April 1983 took the "first mandatory public procedural step in the statutory process" and thereby acquired prior jurisdiction of the disputed areas. Consequently, any subsequent attempts by defendant Town of Elon College to acquire jurisdiction were null and void. Even so, defendant Town of Elon College contends that the doctrine of prior jurisdiction does not apply to the facts of this case. Defendant contends that, for purposes of the prior jurisdiction rule, voluntary and involuntary annexation proceedings are not "equivalent proceedings," and hence the rule does not apply. 2 McQuillin, supra. Defendant relies for its contention upon the case of Town of Hudson v. City of Lenoir, 279 N.C. 156, 181 S.E.2d 443 (1971). That case involved an annexation dispute over an area located between two towns. Hudson sought to annex the area by the involuntary annexation method. Lenoir had received petitions for voluntary annexation from owners of real property in the area. Both proceedings were instituted on the same day, 17 June 1969. The City of Lenoir's voluntary annexation proceeding was completed first. The trial court entered judgment for the City of Lenoir. Upon appeal to this Court, Justice Huskins, writing for the Court, explicitly recognized the majority "prior jurisdiction" rule, but held that the rule was not applicable to the facts of that case. The Court stated: Id. at 160-61, 181 S.E.2d at 446. However, the Court went on to give a second reason for the inapplicability of the prior jurisdiction rule, and it is that basis of inapplicability which defendant Town of Elon College urges us to adopt in the instant case. In Hudson, the Court buttressed its holding with the following statement: Id. at 161, 181 S.E.2d at 447. In our opinion, the above language is an incorrect statement of the law. For purposes of the prior jurisdiction rule, annexation proceedings, regardless of their nature, are "equivalent proceedings," and it is of no consequence which town or city the landowners prefer. In fact, it appears to be the very essence of the involuntary annexation procedures that the affected landowners have no choice, as long as the annexing body complies with the applicable statutes. G.S. 160A-33 et seq. and G.S. 160A-45 et seq. As stated by the Municipal Government Study Commission in 1959: Report of the Municipal Government Study Commission 10 (1950) (emphasis in original). To the extent, therefore, that our holding in Town of Hudson v. City of Lenoir, 279 N.C. 156, 181 S.E.2d 443 (1971), conflicts with our holding here, that case is overruled. Thus, in cases where one municipality institutes valid annexation proceedings first, that municipality should be given priority under the prior jurisdiction rule, and subsequent annexation proceedings, of whatever nature, are of no force and effect. We believe adherence to the prior jurisdiction doctrine is not only consistent with the majority rule, but is in keeping with the spirit and intent of our annexation statutes. In the instant case, plaintiff City of Burlington instituted its procedures first and thus is entitled to the benefit of the prior *539 jurisdiction rule. We therefore hold that the trial court erred in entering summary judgment for defendant. The judgment and restraining order against plaintiff are vacated and the case is remanded to the Alamance County Superior Court for entry of judgment in accordance with this opinion. VACATED and REMANDED. [1] Our research discloses no cases in which the rule has not been followed by the courts. We note in passing, however, that Virginia has statutorily abrogated the longstanding rule by providing for a judicial determination of such disputes, "taking into consideration the interests of all parties to the case." Va.Code Annot. § 15.1-1037 (1981).