November ::, 1961

Konorablo Henry ';:a& District A?torney records Buildins Dallas 2, Texas
Dear Yr. Wade: O;8fnion No. !f/i-l.19C
Re: 'Questions reiatin;, to corpora- 'iion aad application o_C Article 21~68,V.,.P.C. (Sun&.;- Blue Law).

following Youhave requested the oijinion of this office on ti:e

c:uestions set out: "Question No. I: Is a corporation onerating ,morethan one store or businex esxikisiment sellin those certain articles specified in Art. 26a, V.A.P.C., after having sold and 5 offered for sale such articles in one of its stores ona Saturday, proMGited i'rom selling or offering for sale any of such articles on the following Sunday in any and aL1 of its other stores, irrespective of \lhet::er such other stores are located in the sameor different cities and are separately managed and operated by different employees, :,iit:-.out interchance of employee 3’: "Question No. II: Is a corporation which has so13 or offered for sale those certain articles specified in Art. 286a, V.A.P.C. ona Saturday in its store or one of its s'kores, prohibited from acceptirq through 2:~clzent tele;?hone orders for such articles onthe follol.:inS Sunday?
The statute provides in part as follo;;is: tsAnyperson, on both the ,::l;ro(2) consecutive. Ays of Saturday and Sun&;-, whosells or offers for sale or shall eOm;ici, force 01 oblige his employees to sell any clstiiinz; clothing accecsories; vc;rin; ZlpiCirel; footwear; home, business tllre ; Litchenwzre; !:li;~f,~~C~~~~,p~~~ocO~if;jlTniAomea>plinnces; stows; refriCera:ors; air c0n.l:tiorlers; electric fans; raGios; tcIcvisionIionoraXe Henry ‘Wade, page 2 (WW-1190)

sets; xashing machines; driers; cameras; hardware, tools, excluding non-,2o::cr driven hand tools; jewelry; precious or se,mi-;rccious stones; silverVr3re ; :iatc:ieo; ciocks ; lu;;;age ; motor vehicles; :xxics; instruments; recordings; toys, excluding items customarily sold as noveltics and souvenirs; mattresses; bed :overi:?Ss; househol; linens; floor coverings; l~zps; draperies; blinds; curtains; mirrors; lawn mo.qers or cioth piece i;oods si:all ic guilty 0

f amisdemeanor. Each sop:‘-rate sale shall consti cute 2 sc.;,2c~i.e offense. ‘I
Section 3ec:ablishes the punishxent to Oeb;: fine ol not more than ,$lOC .COi’or the first oi‘fense, and provides tkt for t2.e second a.ndal: subseiiuent ol’fenses $unishxcnt shz.ll be b;.imprisonment in j;:.il not e::ct::,iiing 51:~:months or by fine of not more than $,r!X.nO or both.

Section 5a of the siatute proviSes Lt.,:5Article 2C6 and 2;7 of the Penal Code of Texas z.re not rc;.!ealed.

You asked whether a corporation sLln3.n;two or L:o?e stores coui~d 0Ferate one store with one set of em+oyees on Saturday z.:~;ithe other store with Suno:> 1 inc?;de another set of :,m$oyees on

Youhire sut;,estcd tll;:t tix word t~persont’ in scc;ion s corporations.
Weconcur in your o>inior-. Section Gof the s.-td:e ;jrovlCes :

“The papose of this Act kin- to pro.ilote

the he;:ith r-~;~~.~t:on andwei;‘lre of t:.e peo$e of this skie, the oceyation of ’ G!iY business whether bv anv individual. Dartner2;‘

. corooration contr,rv -I to ‘ihe xovislons of tu ;i.sdeclared to be a aublit nuisance and an;- perron maya>pi:’ to any court of competent jL:ris:Iictlon f ’or and May s-jtdin an ~njunctlon res5r;ining sxci2violation of this Ret. Such proc!:edings shail be guided tipthz rules of ’ other injunction procoedir~s.ff
Thelanguage emphasized i,nSec.Lion !ta::c~:c .:xotcd cpccific~lly refers to corporations. Thzrci’ore ;;o corpcrztisn can sell or off.3 for sale or com,Iel .i,;sc!n:~loy<?eer;i.0 ::.ll OL offer for xle arq a~I‘the ~l~OiliDi’LC(; artic;,72 ~:numcr2tcu i:;. .

!;o:lorable Henry Wade, page 3 

### (!~A&1190)

Section 1. Wetherefore hold, in answer to your Questions, that a corporation operating more than one store or business establishment selling the articles specified in Article 2C6a, V.P.C., cannot sell these articles in one store on Saturday and in another store on Sunday. The corporation would beviolating the terms and intent of the statute and under Section 4 could be enjoined as a public nuisance from continuing the violation. The samewould be true of accepting orders througil
an agent. Theact of the agent is the act of the corporation, for a corporation can only act through agents, it being an artificial person. Therefore, the answer to your second question is that a corporation is prohibited from accepting telephone orders through an agent on Sunday if it has sold or offered for sale the specified articles on the Saturday next immediately preceding.

Business corporations operating more than one store cannot elect to have one or more stores open and sell or offer for sale the articles enumerated in Article 286a of Vernon's Penal Code on Saturday and one or more stores open on Sunday to sell or offer for sale these articles but must elect to i-*:!?p all their stores open on Saturday or the followii.;: Sunday; nor can such business corporations accept orders secured through anagent on Sunday if the: have been open and sold or offered the goods for sale on Saturday.
Yours very truly,
WIL WILSON k Att rney

NVS:sh:wb APPROVED: OPINIONCOMMITTEE 5:.V. Geppert, Chairman Jack Price Dudley :IcCalla Leon Pesek
REVIEWED

FORTHEATTOBNEY GENERAL By HouShton Brownlee