M 

h OFFICEOFTHEA'ITORNEY GENERALOFTEXAG 

i AUSTIN 

iWGWINN 

wlaumouBonorable Qmn Ii. Davidson 

County Attorney 

liookley county 

iavellend, Tom38 

Dear Sir: 

\ 

tax attorney. 

160 the folloving 

love& the 8 

to terW.nete on 

8lonexr' Court of 

ea into a eontreat 

The oontraat folThe tax colleotor in 

torney nov seekdoommlsslona for the last four moathe of the 

aontreat. 

You lnqulre: 

al. Ia the eatlon of the foxmer Tex Calleotor in not payi= the oomml,s*ione for the last four 

months of the oontract comluaiveI or vould the 
706 

C&lrrloner8~ Court, if reid Court vero oonvlnoed 

the clsim vers just and unpsld, have authozlty to 

revi*e ths act8 of ths ¶%x Collsator after the oxplrrtlon of the Contract? 

'2. If 8aid Commi8riamrr~ Court vere authorloed and 8ev fit to allw the alaim, vhat vould be 

the oorroat pxooedure for payi- sald olalm on the 

ooml88lon8 Sor the oounty a8 veil as State Delinquent Taxes upon vhloh old&~ ir based?' 

The contract in quertlon provideo, inter aliar 

NClau8e VIII. Plrmt Party agree8 to pay to 

Sekcoad Party 88 oostpenmtlon ior the l zvloes hereunder required 7& per oent (not to exaeed fifteen 

(15) per oent) of the amount oollooted 0r all delinquent taxer, penalty and lntezrest Of the year8 

covered hereby, aotually oolleoted and pald to the 

oollwtor of taxe8 durlrq the texm of thla oontraot, 

of whloh Second Part7 18 inetrumental in oolleoting 

a8 evldencmd b7 copie8 of oOmunloatlon8, tax 

notlaer or abbrtraot8 filed vlth the tax aolleotor 

prior to the payssnt of ruoh tax, lnaludlrrg aollo+ 

tlon of teze8 on property not appearing on the e8- 

reo8ment rolls nor 8hovn delinquent but vhlah vould 

have bvsn so l hovn haU lt been propsrly asseoasd, 

dlrowered br 8oid Second Party, a8 and vhen oolleeted, follov%ng the end of ecrsh month vlthin the 

period of tblo oontraet, .?crcwdingly a8 the oolleotor maker up hia monthly report83 . . . . 

N . . . . 

‘Clause XI. At the end of l aoh month, or l e 

moon thereafter e8Ou tax oollector 8hall have 

mede up hi8 report 8hovlxq colleotloni, m&e for 8uch 

month, said Second Party shall have acsess to raid 

report find 8hall by coaparlson of the seme vlth hi8 

ovn files or record of aervlce, oople8 of which he 

has filed with the tax aolleotor, make up in triplic&te e report of oollectlomi out of vhioh he 18 

entitled to ooami88ion under the term of thl.8 

contract. Seaond Party 8hall alao have aoae88 to 

the collwtorfs reaeipt8 for 8wh oolleotlone end 

ahall, in hi.8 reporto to be made on forms furnished 
707 

Honorable Sum ii. ~vldson, page 3 

by the Coaptroller, 8hou each geer and the taxes 

collected therefor on a separate line, 

After the report has been Signs& and svo&*ti by 

Second Party, two aopfes of the same ahal be hellvrred to the 2%~ Collector, ona to be ettaohbd 

to and sent vlth the Collectorts monthly report to 

the Comptroller, the other flied in the Colleotor's 

offlce, and the Wrd copy to be retained by the 

Beoond Party. 

"Clalwe XII. Eaah aonth, after havlzq reoelved 

coples of the oontroator~8 report es provided f0r In 

the preceding seOtlon, and Oheoked the IlEt of 

taxes shown therein vlth his ovn report and vlth 

copies of oommueloation8 filed vlth him, ali provlded for in Beotlon XIII of this oontraot, and after 

having verified the oorreotnerr of ooumlsrloru 

alrUne&, the oounty tax aolleotm is hmeby authorlsed or&red and dlxeated to dedwt the above SWolfled per oent of said taxes, penalty arid interest, 

oi. 8uOh amount a8 oan be anowed under the po&ty 

a& interest restrloti0n, to Vbloh &a& Party is 

entitled, and to pay the 88~ to him, tie88 othervise herein directed and to take his receipt as provided for on Form 107, Contrcrator'r Report, vhloh 

vhen received in the Camptroller's offloe vlll be 

the Comptroller's rruthorlty to allow the raid tax 

oolleotor br&dlt for-the amxmt so pal&j proiided, 

thet the tax col;leato~ before oomplylqg vith the 

prOViS4iOJlS Of this 8er;fiGII 8h8ll flF8t S&tSfy w 

self that the 'J;iad r-tired of Bacond Party under 

the ~rOV181OM Of Section X Of this ~OOtltrOOt MS 

been approved and plaoed on reaord In the offloe of 

the county c3erk; an8 it is here further provided, 

that ShOti& my qUeStiOn ariSe @e@rding ~onrmi88iOn 

claimed the tax collector rhall vlthhold the paymmt of SUoh comml88lon or en amount equal thereto, 

placing the s8me in esorov, and apply to the Btate 

and county, aocordingly aa they may be effeuted, for 

lnfomatlon and direotlon as to the proper amount 

of commlsaion due to be allowed under the terms of 

tM8 contreat. 

'Clause XSII. In order that the tax oolleotor may be able to verify and attest the oorreotnesr 

of ao~n~isslons claimed by Seaond P&rty, as evldenas 
of rervloe und to entitle hlrm to the oa~Meloa8 

provided for in th18 aontraat, Seuond Party 8hall 

Sile with the tex collector prior to tkme of payment, oopies 0s auuh cceumunfwtion8, tu nOtiOe8 or 

abstracts vhich -11 be premrved by the Eu oollector in 8OIPb sy8tematlcal 0rQr as vlll m&e them 

easily OoOe881ble for the purpose of v0arimi08i or 

fW SolBe OthM V8b O l 8 the SsrpSMyhrVO illOa80 

it beocws neoereary r0r the aounty end State to 

buy in 8WJh properties et tax 8ales1 ti8l.d oopy or 

aoples eh811 el80 oontaia such i&.wmatlon or reference as vi11 enable the tax oolleotor to readily 

locete the tax es it appears on his delinquent r0nlu 

u&l/or delinquent reoOrd8.m 

Under the term of the mntrwt the ill&q of sooth4 reports by the tu attorney 18 l xprese4 me&e 8 Oo3uUtten pPeOedent to h&S receiving ampeJ&eation, for the tu @OlleOtor 18 

‘author18e6, ordered aad dilated” to dedwt the attoIwx’8 mmmi88im. rr0fi3 th0 tu r000ipt8 q %ft0p hov 

““f 

maefved 

oopler 0s the camtreotor*e report. Noreover C euse ,XIXI 

l rbOd.ie@ Still MOthOr SWh OOpditiOO by St&n& thet "to emtitle hiiE t0 the O~SSioIU p~?OVldnd fOP in this 01~3tr~%t, 

seoond Perty 8hall file vith the tat oolleotor prior to tl&s 

or payment, p&es of rueh oo8muuloetlone, tBx notlaee or abstract*. . . Also, a0 4 preatloal matter, it l.8 only after the 

tax ettorney has filed the required lnformatlon that the tax oolleutor aud the Comptroller ore able to aroortairr the proportion 

of the total tax oolleotlonr vhloh the attorney~hor, been S.nstrumautal in obCeWng, arid the nature sad amount thereof. =-11Y, 

uutil this Infornatlon 18 rweived, the tax oollsotor has no 

basic for ascertaining vhat mount, If any, should be p&wed 

In OSoPOV pend.i~ the SOkltiOl3 0s any diSpUt0 VhiaIl might uise 

in oonnection vlth the aom&sslonr. 

SInoe the tax attorney Salle& to rariii these oancUtIon for the laat row months of the oontreot, vs ore of the 

opinion that your tax oollector Yes fioPreot ln falliag to pay 

00wif88iO~ iOr this P?Wiod. We are further of the opInIon that 

Vtth respoot to the perrorumnw or these oondltlim8 time is 0s 

the easeme, and that such oondItlon8 amnOt POV be 84tiSfied. 

We quote from 3 Yllliston on Contreot8, ) 846: 

?&en it le 8eId that timr, 18 of the esoonce, 

the proper llreanlng of the phre8e Isthtthe performanos by one paPty at the time 8pOOLflOd in the 

I 

F 
c 

oontraot or uithia the period apaoifud in the oontract i8 886ential lp order to en&lo him to re- 

-quire performanoe from the other party.' 

In 10 Tax. Jur., 4 239, p. 417, the 8uthor 8tate8t 

'Whether or not time 18 of the e8aenue of a 

contract dependa upon the lntantlon of the partfu. 

%'he qtW8tiOtt i8 POlOlV& UpOn OOM~del’RtiOA Of t&8 

langulge u8ed and the attendant oirounutmoes. OrdtMFil$' time 18 flOt Of the B888DO8 Uld aI3 intMition to make it 80 nu8t be cle4rlg mM1fe*te&" 

We f&l that ruoh P nurife8tatiOn i8 p?e8eRt ia the 

astiant contract. In both Cleuee VIII and Clause XIII ue find 

the reqtalremanthat oopier Of 00PIPUUiO~tlOlX8, tax notwe or 

abstraot8 be filed "prior to th8 PrySent of 8Wh tax," Vhlle 

In Clause Xl we fintl the furtheter rewirement that Um tu kttorimy' monthly report be aomplled and beliverod "8t the end 

of eaoh month, or a8 8oon thereafter au th8 tar ooneata ehan 

have wide up hi8 report rhoviag oolleotionr made for rush month." 

Uplicit in the8e requirements 6nd expliolt in the languqe employed 18 tha fact that tardy oonformtmoe therewPit& motid dirrupt arid to a large extent thwart the mtirt, mhems establl8hed 

by the oontraot for the aocortlinlng and dedwtlng of the attOlWy'8 Coloi88im8. 

Iknwover, under thl8 contraot the nttoFnay*8 O-8- 

sioru uere 'i'& per cent *of tha amount colleoted of al2 &e&aquent taxer, psnelty and lntera8t of the year8 oovtired hereby, 

aotunlly oolleoted and paid to the oolleotor of t-8 &mm 

the tsm of this oontraot." Clearly under thi8 p~ovlalon and 

under the remainder of the aontraot it W*8 oontwlp~ted that 

8UCh oorrmiraton8 be paid and deduatad from the tax monegrr actually reoslved Q8 a HJ8tit Of the attOrIWy8 OffOrtbr title16 7335, 

V. A. C. S., Morrison v. Lane, 157 9. X. (2d) 466 (Clv. App. 

The ttsCsrt8inin& Of such lnOnSy8 the a<hOrity fO2’ the 

%&ioz~~ therefrom, and the obtalnlng'of credit for the deduction fltrom the State’8 share of such funda all %re sxprerrly 

predicated upon the tax attorney's parforlsaaoe in a timely 

t88hlon of tho8e condition8 VhMh the contract made 8 prerOqti8ib to hi8 reoelviag comperucltion. His failure to gmrfOlW such GOUditlOns make8 it lllIVO88iblo n%? t0 adh&'e to the 

term8 of the contraot by oompeluating him from the tax receipt8 

for Whose collection he might have been r%8pOIWlble, since 

such reoslptr have long rri&m been repprted by the tax oollector and trWttsd to the appropriate 

B 

tat+ and oounty fwwis. 
710 

Honorable &IQ & IhVid80~1, pa&$@! 6 

noreover, even if thi8 had not o0otarred, it would now be 

possible to a8certaln the taxes collected by the attorney 

since no Copies of notice8, eto., have been filed to make 

polrsible such aacertalnment, While t0 allOU 8UCh AOtlC88 t.0 

be filed at the prerent t&me would be to open the door to 

which the contract sought to prevent -- the filing of purpo 

ed n&Ices and oomxunicatloa8 to thore person8 who had atie& 

paAd their tiUe8. Finally, the oontraot it8ol.f contained an 

orpro tertinatlon date, Eeuamber 31, 19421 the pre8enae of 

8uah a date evldenoerr the intention Of the paPtie and proridled ample notice to ti attorney that all act8 required to be 

done thereunder should be coinplated at that time. Consequently, we feel that the intention of the partie and the alxcum8tume8 attendant to the formation and operation 0f the ooptract oompel the o~aolu8ion t-t tm wa8 of the e8euaoe with 

re8puat to the parfmmanoe of the 00nditlon8 relating to the 

mmp6n8ation of the tax attommy. 

Since the tu attorney har never. 86timfied ruab aandltion8 and is now preoluded from rati8fyu them, it follmi8 

that ha has not and aennot obtain a legally enfoFcrable olaim 

h~:8Hockl%; W&y8~lth rIBspOt to the aaPrrl88loru vhiah 

the oourtty auditor aazmot approve 

8UQh &.tU (&tiCle8 166i Md 1661, g. c. 8.) end th0 0-W 

SiCUWX’8’ OOWt 1s WithOUt t0 OX'&* it8 PpjWOVti. 

Cameron county v. Fox, 2 S. W. p.): Howard v. 

ii8Ild8I’8OXl County, 116 S. W. . Thi8 OODtth8ilXl arake Wltl8Oe88Uy M &X8WOF t0 YOUr 8OOORd qW8tiOIk. 

Trusting that the foregoing fully an8wer8 your ingulry, we are