The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1912-09-28

LEYEE BOARDS DOMIcuE.

Attorney General Pleasant Rules that
Lafourche Board Cannot Hold
Meetings and Perform Its corpo-
rate Acts at Any Other Place
than Dona.dsonvii!e-Dis At
torney Gilbert Sustained.
The New Orleans Times-Democrat
Of Sept. 20 says:
Again the domicile controversy Of
he Lafourche Leyee Board has been
eferred to Attorney General Ruffin
!. Pleasant for ali opinion, this time
rom the board S legal adviser, Philip
I. Gilbert, and Mr.. Pleasant has
cid that Donaldsonyille is the legal
omiciie of the board and the only
place at which business can be trans
acted
The opinion Of the attorney gener-
.al upho1ds that originally made by
Mr.. Gilbert. Not feeling satisfied
apparently, the board recently ap-
pealed to the attorney general over
the head of their attorney, but the
former declined to take part in the
controversy, stating that the board
had no legal right to appeal from
their legal advisers opinion. Since
hen, Mr.. Gilbert himself has asked
Mr.. Pleasant to render him an opin-
ion in the matter, and the attorney
general Yesterday complied with the
request.
Following is the oninion rendered:
"Ths purpose oe this letter Is I
acknowledge receipt of yours OF the
14th instant, and to advise you rela-
live to the matters about which you
express a desire for an opinion.
You ask me:
L. Where is the donicile OF the
board of commissioners Of the La.
iourche Basin Levee District located?
.. Has the said board the right
to change its domicile by resolution?
f. g. Has the board the right to rent
an office in the city of New Orleans,
IN order to facilitate its business?
These questions were propounded
| to me a few weeks ago by the board
of commissioners, but, having been
| informed that you, as their legally
constituted adviser, had already rem
ldered an opinion thereon, I declined
| to pass on the points presented. How,
| ever, as you have now joined the
BOARD in its request for an opinion
land as the district attorneys have
a right, under section 131 of the re
yised statutes, to call on this office
Tor advice, I am pleased to transmit
to you my views in this letter.
Questions one and two, above
presented, were decided by the dis
trict court in and for the parish Of
| Ascension, in the case of Dehon eli
al. vs. The. Board of Commissioners
of the Lafourche Basin Levee Dis
ltrict ct al, No. 1874 Of the district
court docket.
| The court held:
It. That DonaldsonVille is the dom
icile of the board, and Q, That the
domicile could not be changed b.
resolution Of the board.
I The following are excerpts from
The able opinion of Judge Paul Leche
lin the aforesaid case: 5
u The question Of jurisdiction IA
tiona personae demands considera
ton at the outset. Act. No. 10 Of
the general assembly OF 1892, Great
/ ing the Lafourche Basin Levee Dis
ltrict, and providing for the organiza
ton OF a board OF commissioners tc
! superintend and control the affairs Of
said district, first repeats Act No. SO
of 1879, creating the Third Levee Dis
erict, and creates a new levee dis
ltrict to be styled The Lafourche
Basin Levee District, Z defines its
territorial limits, and specifies the
property therein subject to taxation
The third section fixes
| the time and place for the first meet.
| ing of the commissioners and the
manner of organizing the board, the
manner of removing and filling va.
lcancies, and the salaries Of commits.
sioners. = - Section Z, in ad.
dition to the powers already con
ferred, constitutes said board into a
political corporation invested with
| the power inherent in said corpora
tions, with authority to sue and be
sued. directs that process be served
upon the president or secretary, and
contains the further provision, THE
board shall at its first regular meet.
! ing elect a domicile for the purpose
of being sued and keeping its office
and archives, etc. =
The board at its first meeting,
held under section 3, on the 4th OF
August, 1898, at Donaldsonville, elect.
ed DonaldsonVille, in the parish OF
Ascension, as its domicile, under the
authority delegated to it in section
II. On the 8th OF July, 1897. the
board, by resolution, changed its dom
| icile from Donaldsonville to Gretna
the change to take effect from Aug
IL, 1897.
$ The question presented Is
whether the board had the authority
under the act creating it to make
thi cha n pa ....815s...