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,,TT,I,,.VEY Gl~St?HIZI. October 26, 1951 

Hon. Robert S. Calvert Opiniou No. V-1332, 

Comptroller of Public Accounts 

Austin, Texas Re: Ad valorem personal property tax suits. 

Dear Mr..Calvert: 

You submit for the opinion of this office the questions 

contained in the letter addressed to you by Ha3. Ralph W. Kinsey. 

delinquent tax attorney of Daweon County. These questions are as 

followr: 

1. la a perroaal propertg: suit filed in the Jurtice of PEsce Court would the appearanew date be the 

Brat Monday after 10 day8 or the fir& Imtonday after 

20 day8 from date of service? 

2. Since in moat par6onal property suite it i6 

difficult or impoaeible to,determine what type’of property has been taxed,. unless the rendition or ael)eaameat rheets are available because the tax rolls show 

the property under the caption personal or miscells8~008 without other aescription,. io it carrect aad permissible to list the entirelist a6 rhown in Article 

7328.1 sectiou 2 ln the citation 4lld petition? 

‘3. Do the provlrioar of Section 2, Artleii 7345b, 

V.C.S., requiring thn impleading or tmtificatti of other 

ta16bag unite hsvirrg delbquent ad vdlorem tax claim6 

rgdaat the property involved la the rult, apply to pereonal property tax suita? 

Your second quertion has huretofore been answered in 

part by,thir office in Opinion V-l 120 (1930), a copy of which Jr eaclosed for your information. In that opinion it was held that pereonal property tax suit6 need only dercrlbe the propecty ia general 

termu, but thir doe6 sot mean that thblist eet out in Article 7328.1. 

V.C.S., may be used, ae ruggested in your letters, in each citetion. 

without regard to the kind bf peroonal property upon which the tax 

is delinquent Ln a particular c4ae. The deecrlption in the &atiooa 

should bo SutiSciraItl~ deflulte to oatable tba defer&ant to detrrmlaa 

yhdu~r ihe ~s~amnaat 18 ag4Sn4t poporty owned by him. 
. 

Hon. Robert S. Calvert, Page 2 (V-1332) 

We shall answer y&r first and third question8 in 

their order. 

The provisions of ‘Rule 117a promulgated by the Supreme Court applicable to delinquent tax suits apply with equal 

force to suits to collect delinquent taxes on personal property a8 

they do to the collection of delinquent taxes on real property. 

lows: 

Subdivision 6 of Rule 117a provides, in part, a6 fol- 

‘“The form of citation for personal service shall 

be, sufficient if it is in substantihlly the following form, 

with proper: changes to make the same applicable to 

personal property, where necessary, and If the suit includes or 1s for the recovery of taxes assessed on personal property, a general description of such personal 

property shall be sufficient; . . .” (Emphasio added.) 

The rule then proceeds to preecribe a form if citation, and while this form is referable to the district court. we perceive no valid reason why it could not appropriately be adapted 

for use in the justice court. Substitution of the justice court for 

the district court is one of the “eroper change* to make the same 

applicable to personal property, where the suit for collection of 

delinquent peroonal property taxes 16 brought in the justice court. 

The citation requires the defendant to appear and answer at or before 10:00 o’clock a.m. of the Monday next after the 

expiration df 20 days from the,date of service of citation. This 

conflicts ~with Rule 534 governing citation generally in suits in the 

justice court in that Rule 534 requires the defendant ~to appear and 

answer the, plaintiff’s suit on the Monday ne’xt after the expiration 

of 10 days from the date of service, We are of~tbe opinion, however, that the effect of Rule 117a, which is applicable specifically 

to all delinquent tax suits, canstitutee an exception to Rule 534 goverzg citations gerberally in &its filed in the justice court. Sub’- 

division 1 of Rule 117a provides that proceos b9 personal oervice 

in tax suit6 shall be “Served and returned and otherwise regulated 

by the provisiona 4 Rules 99 to 107, inclusive.” Rule 101~ require6 

that the defendant be commanded to appear and answer the plaintiff’s petition *at or before 10 o’c1ockp.m. of the Monday next after the expiration of 20 day6 from thd~date of 6ervice.” It 16 our 

opinion, therefore, that Subdivision 6 of Rule 117a is applicable to 

s&s filed for delinqdent taxes on personal property in the justice 

Court and that the defendant should be cited tom appear and an6wer 

a6 therein provided, namely, at or before 10:00 o’clock a.m. of the 

Monday next after the expiration of 20 day6 from the date of service of the citation. 
I 

Hon. Robert S. Calvert, Page 3 (V-1332) 

In answer to your third question, we think it is apparent from the provisions of Article 7345b, V.C.S., that it was the 

intention of the Legi,slature ttit this article apply exclucively to 

suits for the collection’of delinquent taxee against real property 

and not to suits for the collection of delinquent taxes on personal 

property. We do not mean to say that taxes owing by a delinquent 

taxpayer on personal property may not be included in the same 

suit for delinquent taxes owing by him on his real property, but 

the provisions of Article 3345b relating to the impleading or notification of other taxing units apply only to suits for delinquent 

taxes on real property, Therefore, in anseer t0 your third question, you are a.dvised that the county 8ttornep or other attorney 

employed by the’county under contract for the collection of delinquent takes should disregard the provisions of Article 7345b in 

filing suits for delinquent taxes on personal property, regardless 

of whether the suit is filed in district court, county cburt, or justke court. 

SUMMARY 

Citations in personal property tax suits need 

only describe the property in general terms. The description in the citation should be sufficiently definite 

to enable the defendant to determine whether the assessment is against property owned by him. Rule 1178. 

Ten. Rules Civ, Proc;j Att’y Gen. Op. V-1120 (1950). 

Rule 117aof the Rules of Civil Procedure governs as to citation5 in delinquent tax suits on personal 

property filed in justice court, requiring the defendant 

to appear and answer at or before 10:00 o’clock a.m. 

of the Monday next after the expiration of 20 days from 

the date of service, and not as provided by Rule 534 

governing citations generally in suits in justice court. 

Article 3345b. V.C.S., does not apply to suits for 

the colioctton of delinquent taxes on personal property, 

but appliee only to sutts for the collection of taxes on 

real propertyA 

APPROVED1 

w. v. Geppcrt 

Taxation Division 

Yours very truly, 

PRICE DANIEL 

Everett Hutchinson 

&eCUtiVe AgaiSt8at 

Charles D. M&hews 

First Aasietant 

By ?g? 2T&a*.J 

L. ‘P. &Dar 

Assistant 

LPL/mwb 

Epcl.