The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-05-03
|FinkeIstein
Continued from Page D

(Continued from Page D
 were in "extreme cases" He charg- ed that Cassidy and his co-plain. tiffs had adequate remedy at law thrown Common Pleas Court taS appeals.
 The business property assess ments were first referred to in the case today, when Finkelstein an- swered a claim of Fitzgerald that the taxayers involved had adequate remedy at law through individual appeals to Common Pleas Court.
 Finkelstein claimed that TO ref- erence could be made to business establishment assessment in in- dividual appeals, and said the two Superior Court actions, CasSidy's and that of the Community Clubs Council, were instituted so that "all the facts" could be brought out.
 Figure Disputed
 He charged that ''the hundreds of thousands of dollars of de- crease given some business owners could not be brought out in Board of Tax Review appeal hearings. He said the home assessments were too high because the business places received a decrease and the city had to boost it's Grand List from $195, ,OOO, GOO to $216, 6,O0O, 900.
 Finkelstein also claimed that 15,0M taxpayers are involved in the Cassidy and Council suits, and charged that 15,O24 individual suits could never be heard by one court.
 Children as yet unborn would be representing the taxpayers in some of those cases" he com mented facetiously.
 Fitzgerald in later argument disputed the figure of 15,024 tax payers, and said the court papers did not substantiate any such state ment.
 Fitzgerald told the court in his arguments that the only two cases in which injunctions had been granted, involved in one case, prop erty that was exempt from taxation, and in the other, tax against the wrong owner.
 He said that the reason for an injunction must be compelling" !" and said there was nothing in the Cassidy suit to warrant an injunc- tion.
 Fitzgerald said that in view of the remedy open to the plaintiffs, in view of the lack of any claim that the plaintiffs face irreparable in jury, and in view of the lack of any outstanding circumstances, tn court could not "in the exercises of reasonable discretion" grant the plaintiffs request.
 He said in view of the seriousness of the matter and hte size and scope of the subject matter, 1t would be appropriate to have the questions of law reserved for a de- cision by the State Supreme Court.
 Suggests Referee
 Judge Quinlan later suggested that counsel try to agree on facts, so that reservation would be pos sible. He said questions on which no agreement Is made might be aS- signed to referee for finding of fact or else be sent to the Su- preme Court as disputed facts.
 Finkelstein answered Fitzgerald's statement that only two injunctions had ever been granted by saying, There will be a third case some day and we think this is it."
 He said the plaintiffs should have an opportunity to have court trial, and said the demurrer should be overruled so as trial could re- suit. He said the request for a permanent injunction was differ ent from the motion for a tempor- ary injunction, which Judge Quin- Ian recently denied.
 During the course of his argu- ment Finkelstein pointed out that the city was seeking validation of the assessments from the General Assembly, but Judge Quinlan brushed off the argument.
 Courts Hesitant
 Judge Quinlan said that any trial court would hesitate to grant the things requested in the Cassidy suit, and said that very serious effort should be made to agree SO that the Supreme Court. could de- eide the issues.
 He amitted that the Legislature, which ordered the revaluation pro- gram, could make mistakes, but said the courts would still be hesi- tant in overruling the Legislature.
 Finkelstein replied by saying, How could we ever agree that there was an unconsionable re- duction in value of businesses in the center of Waterbury"
 Cassidy in brief argument re- ferred to his property on West | Main Street, but the court said no reference to it had been made in the court papers, and brushed off the statement.
 Early in the hearing, the court ordered Cassidy an the other plain tiffs to post $100 bond for pay ment of costs in the even they should lose.