The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-01-04
NEW POINT ON LIENS
IMPORTANT QUESTION RAISED By
BLACKLEDGE & THORNTON.
The Attorneys Hold street and sewer
Improvement Liens Cannot Be
ForecIosed.

A new question has been raised concern
ing the power Of the Circuit or Superior
Court to foreclose streee and sewer-im-
provement liens. and which affects thou
sands of property owners in this city. The
foreclosure of those liens in instances of
delinquencies have proved a great source of
vexation and annoyance to some property
owners, especially when the amounts were
small. 1t has been no uncommon thing in
many cases for the courts costs and attor-
ney's fees to amount to much more than the
original assessments, and a few attorneys
have perched, near the time these assess
ments fell due, on the railing around the
county treasurer's counter, watching the as
sessments as closely as a carrion buzzard
hovers and watches the expiring breath Of
a dying OK.
Last November Charles Z. Reynolds
missed a small sewer assessment against
lot he owned, although he inquired for all
the assessments against the lot, and the
whole assessment fell due. The installment
to be paid was not large. Two or three
days after it became delinquent he discov-
cred the condition of affairs, and went and
paid the delinquent installmeft, the county
treasurer accepting the amount and giving
him q receipt for the payment.
A few days afterwards the Indiana Bond
Company, by its attorneys, Richcreek &
Richcreek, brought suit to foreclose the full
assessment having full knowledge that the
delinquent installment had been already
fully paid, and now insist on their right to
foreclose. The firm of Blackledge & Thorn
ton has been employed to defend the case,
and they insist that the courts no longer
have any jurisdiction to foreclose ordinary
street or sewer-improvement liens. The
city charter was amended in 1895 providing
that seWer-improvement liens should be
collected the same as street-improvement
liens. The same year the Legislature UNI
dertook to regulate the amount of attor-
ney's fees to be allowed in the foreclosure
of street-improvement liens, but owing to
juggle in the amendment, half the effect
was lost. But in 1897, because of the abuse
that had arisen in these foreclosure suits,
the Legislature amended the law with re-
gard to the collection of street-improye-
ment liens, and provided that they should
be collected as delinquent taxes are now
collected, which is by the county auditor
advertising end selling the lot assessed
This law applies to liens created as well
before as after, its passage. There is now
no statute authorizing the foreclosure or
street-improvement liens, except where the
Board of Public Works authorizes the di-
rect payment of the contractor with the i'm
provement bonds in place of money instead
of selling the bonds and paying him cash.
The latter method is done pursuant to that
AS the IlSnI 10 lOISClOSS
street-improvement lien has been taken
away, the attorneys claim that the right
to foreclose sewer lien falls with 1t.
This question has not been presented in
any case now pending in our courts, and If
the claim is sustained it will be great re-
lief to the overburdened dockets, although
disastrous to certain few lawyers who
thrive by this class of business.
The usual practice has been, especially
with the Indi, ma Bond Company. to file
one complaint, uniting therein forty or
f1ffV LOT owners defendants. 1t Is very
little more labor to sue fifty than one lot
owner, and If the case proceeded to Judg-
ment the attorneys fees that would be
allowed by the courts would not be very
burdensome when divided up among the
several defendants. But the policy of the
attorneys has been to settle with each de-
PENDANT separately ard then secure fee
from EACH which in the aggregate would
make a handsome return for his services
much more so than the other way.
There is a large list of cases now pend
ing and set for trial in the courts, espe-
cially in the Circuit Court that will have
to be dismissed it, this contention OF Black
ledge & Thornton is sustained.