reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
NC Gen Stat § 156-47 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 4 - Rights and Liabilities in the Corporation.|§ 156-47 - Rights of infant owners protected.

 156-47. Rights of infant owners protected.If any proprietor whose lands are adjudged to be benefited by a canal shall be an infant, no process shall be issued against him during his minority, or within 12 months thereafter, to enforce payments of any assessment, and he may, at any time within such 12 months, apply to have any order, judgment, or decree made against him set aside as to him. If the infant or his guardian shall, during his minority, and the 12 months next thereafter, pay the dues assessed on him, he shall have all the rights and privileges of corporator, to be exercised through his guardian. If the infant shall fail to pay, he shall not have any such rights, but if no action to set aside the judgment of the court creating the corporation shall have been brought by him as aforesaid, or upon the decision of such action against him, he shall be entitled to receive his proper share of stock and to possess all the rights and be bound by all the liabilities of a corporator, including a liability for assessments made during his minority, but not for interest on such, nor for any penalty for their prior nonpayment. (1868-9, c. 164, s. 11; Code, s. 1320; Rev., s. 4005; C.S., s. 5305.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-48 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 4 - Rights and Liabilities in the Corporation.|§ 156-48 - Compensation for damage to lands.

 156-48. Compensation for damage to lands.If any proprietor of lands shall be damaged by any improvement proposed, the commissioners shall so report, and he shall be entitled to be compensated as may be just by the proprietor whose lands are benefited in proportion to the benefit to them respectively; but in estimating such damages the benefit shall be deducted, and such proprietor shall be entitled to all the rights and privileges of a corporator as respects the use of the improvement, but shall not be entitled to a vote, or be bound for the assessment. (1868-9, c. 164, s. 12; Code, s. 1321; Rev., s. 4006; C.S., s. 5306.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-49 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 4 - Rights and Liabilities in the Corporation.|§ 156-49 - Dissolution of corporation.

 156-49. Dissolution of corporation.If, from any cause, the canal or other improvement shall become or shall prove to be valueless, any corporator may apply as is provided in other cases of special proceedings, and the court may dissolve the corporation created in connection with it. (1868-9, c. 164, s. 13; Code, s. 1322; Rev., s. 4007; C.S., s. 5307.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-50 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 4 - Rights and Liabilities in the Corporation.|§ 156-50 - Laborer's lien for work on canal.

 156-50. Laborer's lien for work on canal.Whenever work or repair shall be done on such canal and any of the parties owning lands liable to be assessed for such work or repairs shall fail or refuse to pay the amount assessed upon their land, then and in that event the laborers performing such work shall have a lien upon such land to the extent of the amount assessed against the same by the corporation, and such lien may be enforced in the same manner as provided by the laws of this State for the enforcement of laborers' lien. (1899, c. 600, s. 2; Rev., s. 4009; C.S., s. 5308.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-51 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 4 - Rights and Liabilities in the Corporation.|§ 156-51 - Penalty for nonpayment of assessments.

 156-51. Penalty for nonpayment of assessments.Whenever any person whose lands have been adjudged liable to contribute to the maintenance or repair of such canal shall fail or refuse to pay the amount assessed against his land for such maintenance or repair for 30 days after such payment has been demanded by the company, then the company may give such person notice in writing of its intention to cut off his right of drainage into the canal, and if such person shall still neglect and refuse to pay such assessment for 30 days after such notice, then the company may proceed to so obstruct and dam up the ditches of such delinquent as will effectually prevent his draining in the canal. (1899, c. 600, s. 3; Rev., s. 4010; C.S., s. 5309.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-52 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 4 - Rights and Liabilities in the Corporation.|§ 156-52 - Corporation authorized to issue bonds.

 156-52. Corporation authorized to issue bonds.The corporations organized under this Subchapter are authorized to issue bonds to such an amount and in such denomination as they may elect, payable at such times as may be provided, and to sell the same at not less than par, the proceeds of the sale of such bonds to be used for the payment of the costs of survey and construction and maintenance of the canal. The bonds shall constitute a lien upon the lands drained or improved by the canal as described in the reports of the commissioners. (1908, c. 75, s. 1; C.S., s. 5310.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-53 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 4 - Rights and Liabilities in the Corporation.|§ 156-53 - Payment of bonds enforced.

 156-53. Payment of bonds enforced.Upon default of the payment of the interest or principal of such bonds, the holders of the bonds of the corporations organized under this Subchapter shall have a right to enforce the lien created by G.S. 156-52 by civil actions in the superior courts of the State. (1908, c. 75, s. 2; C.S., s. 5311.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-54 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-54 - Jurisdiction to establish districts.

 156-54. Jurisdiction to establish districts.The clerk of the superior court of any county in the State of North Carolina shall have jurisdiction, power and authority to establish levee or drainage districts either wholly or partly located in his county, and which shall constitute a political subdivision of the State, and to locate and establish levees, drains or canals, and cause to be constructed, straightened, widened or deepened, any ditch, drain or watercourse, and to build levees or embankments and erect tidal gates and pumping plants for the purpose of draining and reclaiming wet, swamp or overflowed land; and it is hereby declared that the drainage of swamplands and the drainage of surface water from agricultural lands and the reclamation of tidal marshes shall be considered a public use and benefit and conducive to the public health, convenience and welfare, and that the districts heretofore and hereafter created under the law shall be and constitute political subdivisions of the State, with authority to provide by law to levy taxes and assessments for the construction and maintenance of said public works. (1909, c. 442, s. 1; C.S., s. 5312; 1921, c. 7.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-55 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-55 - Venue; special proceedings.

 156-55. Venue; special proceedings.When the lands proposed to be drained and created into a drainage district are located in two or more counties, the clerk of the superior court of either county has the jurisdiction conferred by this Subchapter. Venue is in that county in which the petition is first filed. The law and the rules regulating special proceedings apply in the proceeding, except as modified by this Subchapter. The proceedings may be ex parte or adversary. (1909, c. 42, ss. 2, 38; C.S., s. 5313; 1999-216, s. 19.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-56 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-56 - Petition filed.

 156-56. Petition filed.A petition signed by a majority of the resident landowners in a proposed drainage district or by the owners of three fifths of all the land which will be affected or assessed for the expense of the proposed improvements may be filed in the office of the clerk of the superior court of any county in which a part of the lands is located, setting forth that any specific body or district of land in the county and adjoining counties, described in such a way as to convey an intelligent idea as to the location of such land, is subject to overflow or too wet for cultivation, and the public benefit or utility or the public health, convenience or welfare will be promoted by draining, ditching, or leveeing the same or by changing or improving the natural watercourses, and setting forth therein, as far as practicable, the starting point, route, and terminus and lateral branches, if necessary, of the proposed improvement.The petition will also show whether or not the proposed drainage is for the reclamation of lands not then fit for cultivation or for the improvement of land already under cultivation. It shall also state that, if a reclamation district is proposed to be established, such lands so reclaimed will be of such value as to justify the reclamation. (1909, c. 442, s. 2; C.S., s. 5314; 1921, c. 76; Pub. Loc. 1923, c. 88, s. 2; 1925, c. 85; 1927, c. 98.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-57 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-57 - Bond filed and summons issued.

 156-57. Bond filed and summons issued.Upon filing with the petition a bond for the amount of fifty dollars ($50.00) per mile for each mile of the ditch or proposed improvement, signed by two or more sureties or by some lawful and authorized surety company, to be approved by the clerk of superior court, conditioned for the payment of all costs and expenses incurred in the proceeding in case the court does not grant the prayer of the petition, the clerk, shall at any time thereafter, issue summons to be served on all the defendant landowners, who have not joined in the petition and whose lands are included in the proposed drainage district. The summons may be served by publication as to any defendant who cannot be personally served as provided by law.The attorney for the petitioners shall certify to the clerk of the superior court, prior to the hearing on the final report of the board of viewers, that due diligence has been used to determine the names of all landowners within the area of the proposed drainage district; and, that summons has been issued for such landowners, so determined, and served either by personal service or by publication for all known and unknown landowners, insofar as could be determined by due diligence. (1909, c. 442, s. 2; C.S., s. 5315; 1967, c. 621.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-58 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-58 - Publication in case of unknown owners.

 156-58. Publication in case of unknown owners.If, at the time of the filing of the petition, or at any time subsequent thereto, it shall be made to appear to the court by affidavit or otherwise that the names of the owners of the whole or any share of any tracts of land are unknown, and cannot after due diligence be ascertained by the petitioners, the court shall order a notice in the nature of a summons to be given to all such persons by a publication of the petition, or of the substance thereof, and describing generally the tracts of land as to which the owners are unknown, with the order of the court thereon, in some newspaper published in the county wherein the land is located, or in some other county if no newspaper shall be published in the first-named county, which newspaper shall be designated in the order of the court, and a copy of such publication shall be also posted in at least three conspicuous places within the boundaries of the proposed district, and at the courthouse door of the county. Such publication in a newspaper and by posting shall be made for a period of four weeks. After the time of publication shall have expired, if no person claiming and asserting title to the tracts of land and entitled to notice shall appear, the court in its discretion may appoint some disinterested person to represent the unknown owners of such lands, and thereupon the court shall assume jurisdiction of the tracts of land and shall adjudicate as to such lands to the same extent as if the true owners were present and represented, and shall proceed against the land itself. If at any time during the pendency of the drainage proceeding the true owners of the lands shall appear in person, they may be made parties defendant of their own motion and without the necessity of personal service, and shall thereafter be considered as parties to the proceeding; but they shall have no right to except to or appeal from any order or judgment theretofore rendered, as to which the time for filing exceptions on notice shall have expired. (1911, c. 67, s. 1; C.S., s. 5316; 1953, c. 675, s. 25.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-59 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-59 - Board of viewers appointed by clerk.

 156-59. Board of viewers appointed by clerk.The clerk shall, on the filing of petition and bond, appoint a disinterested and competent civil and drainage engineer and two resident freeholders of the county or counties in which the lands are located as a board of viewers to examine the lands described in the petition and make a preliminary report thereon. The drainage engineer shall be appointed upon the recommendation of the Department of Environmental Quality; and no member of the board of viewers so appointed shall own any land within the boundaries of the proposed district. In the selection of the two members of the board of viewers, other than the engineer, the clerk before making the appointment shall make careful inquiry into the character and qualifications of the proposed members, to the end that the members so appointed shall possess the necessary character, capacity, fitness, and impartiality for the discharge of their important duties.  (1909, c. 442, s. 2; 1917, c. 152, s. 1; C.S., s. 5317; 1961, c. 614, s. 4; c. 1198; 1973, c. 1262, s. 23; 1977, c. 771, s. 4; 1989, c. 727, s. 218(157); 1997-443, s. 11A.123; 2015-241, s. 14.30(u).)
NC Gen Stat § 156-60 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-60 - Attorney for petitioners.

 156-60. Attorney for petitioners.The petitioners shall select some learned attorney or attorneys to represent them, who shall prosecute the drainage proceeding and advise with the petitioners and board of viewers, and shall agree upon the compensation for his professional services up to the time when the district shall be established and the board of drainage commissioners elected, or as nearly so as the same may be approximated. If the petitioners are unable to agree upon the selection of an attorney or attorneys, the selection may be made by the clerk of the court. The foregoing provision shall not interfere with the right of any individual petitioner in the selection of an attorney to represent his individual interests if he shall deem the same desirable or necessary. (1917, c. 152, s. 1; C.S., s. 5318.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-62 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-62 - Examination of lands and preliminary report.

 156-62. Examination of lands and preliminary report.The board of viewers shall proceed to examine the land described in the petition, and other land if necessary to locate properly such improvement or improvements as are petitioned for, along the route described in the petition, or any other route answering the same purpose if found more practicable or feasible, and may make surveys such as may be necessary to determine the boundaries and elevation of the several parts of the district, and shall make and return to the clerk of the superior court within 30 days, unless the time shall be extended by the court, a written report, which shall set forth:(1) Whether the proposed drainage is practicable or not.(2) Whether it will benefit the public health or any public highway or be conducive to the general welfare of the community.(3) Whether the improvement proposed will benefit the lands sought to be benefited.(4) Whether or not all the lands that are benefited are included in the proposed drainage district.(5) Whether or not the district proposed to be formed is to be a reclamation district or an improvement district. A reclamation district is defined to be a district organized principally for reclaiming lands not already under cultivation. An improvement district is defined to be a district organized principally for the improvement of lands then under cultivation. The board of viewers shall further report, if the district is a reclamation district within the above definition, whether or not the proposed drainage would be justified by the additional value for agricultural purposes given to land so drained.They shall also file with this report a map of the proposed drainage district, showing the location of the ditch or ditches or other improvement to be constructed and the lands that will be affected thereby, and such other information as they may have collected that will tend to show the correctness of their findings. (1909, c. 442, s. 3; C.S., s. 5320; 1927, c. 98, s. 2.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-63 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-63 - First hearing of preliminary report.

 156-63. First hearing of preliminary report.The clerk of the superior court shall consider this report. If the viewers report that the drainage is not practicable or that it will not benefit the public health or any public highway or be conducive to the general welfare of the community, and the court shall approve such findings, the petition shall be dismissed at the cost of the petitioners, and such petition shall likewise be dismissed at the cost of the petitioners if it is sought to set up a reclamation district and the viewers report that the cost of reclaiming the land would be so great as not to justify the expense of draining it. Such petition or proceeding may again be instituted by the same or additional landowners at any time after six months, upon proper allegations that conditions have changed or that material facts were omitted or overlooked. If the viewers report that the drainage is practicable and that it will benefit the public health or any public highway or be conducive to the general welfare of the community, and the court shall so find, then the court shall fix a day when the report will be further heard and considered. (1909, c. 442, s. 4; C.S., s. 5321; 1927, c. 98, s. 3.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-64 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-64 - Notice of further hearing.

 156-64. Notice of further hearing.If the petition is entertained by the court, notice shall be given by publication once a week for at least two consecutive weeks in some newspaper of general circulation within the county or counties, if one shall be published in such counties, and also by posting a written or printed notice at the door of the courthouse and at five conspicuous places within the drainage district, that on the date set, naming the day, the court will consider and pass upon the report of the viewers. At least 15 days shall intervene between the date of the publication and the posting of the notices and the date set for the hearing. (1909, c. 442, s. 5; C.S., s. 5322; 1963, c. 767, s. 1.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-65 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-65 - Further hearing, and district established.

 156-65. Further hearing, and district established.At the date appointed for the hearing the court shall hear and determine any objections that may be offered to the report of the viewers. If it appear that there is any land within the proposed levee or drainage district that will not be affected by the leveeing or drainage thereof, such lands shall be excluded and the names of the owners withdrawn from such proceeding; and if it shall be shown that there is any land not within the proposed district that will be affected by the construction of the proposed levee or drain, the boundary of the district shall be so changed as to include such land, and such additional landowners shall be made parties plaintiff or defendant, respectively, and summons shall issue accordingly, as hereinbefore provided. After such change in the boundary is made, the sufficiency of the petition shall be verified, to determine whether or not it conforms to the requirements hereinbefore provided. The efficiency of the drainage or levees may also be determined, and if it appears that the location of any levee or drain can be changed so as to make it more effective, or that other branches or spurs should be constructed, or that any branch or spur projected may be eliminated or other changes made that will tend to increase the benefits of the proposed work, such modification and changes shall be made by the board. The engineer and the other two viewers may attend this meeting and give any information or evidence that may be sought to verify and substantiate their report. If necessary, the petition, as amended, shall be referred by the court to the engineer and two viewers for further report. The above facts having been determined to the satisfaction of the court, and the boundaries of the proposed district so determined, it shall declare the establishment of the drainage or levee district, which shall be designated by a name or number, for the object and purpose as herein set forth.If any lands shall be excluded from the district because of the court having found that such lands will not be affected or benefited, and the names of the owners of such lands have been withdrawn from such proceeding, but such lands are so situated as necessarily to be located within the outer boundaries of the district, such fact shall not prevent the establishment of the district, and such lands shall not be assessed for any drainage tax; but this shall not prevent the district from acquiring a right-of-way across such lands for constructing a canal or ditch or for any other necessary purpose authorized by law.The court shall further determine, if it is sought to establish a reclamation district, whether or not the increased value of the particular land should be so great as to justify the cost and expenses of its reclaiming. (1909, c. 442, s. 6; 1911, c. 67, s. 2; C.S., s. 5323; 1927, c. 98, s. 4.)
NC Gen Stat § 156-66 (2021)
2021 North Carolina General Statutes|Chapter 156 - Drainage|Article 5 - Establishment of Districts.|§ 156-66 - Right of appeal.

 156-66. Right of appeal.Any person owning lands within the drainage or levee district which he thinks will not be benefited by the improvement and should not be included in the district may appeal from the decision of the court to the superior court of such county, in termtime, by filing an appeal, accompanied by a bond conditioned for the payment of the costs if the appeal should be decided against him, for such sum as the court may require, not exceeding two hundred dollars ($200.00), signed by two or more solvent sureties or in some approved surety company to be approved by the court. (1909, c. 442, s. 8; C.S., s. 5324.)