Court Opinion

ID: 9656041
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-23 19:32:10.417361+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T10:24:36.594814
License: Public Domain

SCOTT, Justice
(dissenting).
I respectfully dissent. I would reverse the decision of the trial court on the ground that a hearing and decision by an independent hearing examiner must precede the city’s revocation of a liquor license.
Minn.Stat. § 340.135 (1982) states:
The authority issuing or approving any license or permit pursuant to the intoxicating liquor act may either suspend for not to exceed 60 days or revoke such license or permit upon a finding that the licensee or permit holder has failed to comply with any applicable statute, regulation or ordinance relating to intoxicating liquor. No suspension or revocation shall take effect until the licensee or permit holder has been afforded an opportunity for a hearing pursuant to sections 14.57 to 14.70.
(Emphasis added.) A hearing conducted in accordance with Minn.Stat. §§ 14.57 to 14.-70 (1982) (contested case and review provisions of the Minnesota Administrative Procedure Act) contemplates the appointment of an impartial hearing examiner. Minn. Stat. § 14.58 assumes that an independent hearing examiner will be utilized when it states, in part:
Prior to assignment of a case to a hearing examiner as provided by sections 14.48 to 14.56 [legislation relating to the office of hearing examiner], all papers shall be filed with the agency. Subsequent to assignment of the case, the agency shall certify the official record to the office of administrative hearings, and thereafter, all papers shall be filed with that office. The office of administrative hearings shall maintain the official record which shall include subsequent filings, testimony and exhibits. All filings are deemed effective upon receipt. The record shall contain a written transcript of the hearing only if preparation of a transcript is requested by the agency, a party, or the chief hearing examiner. The agency or party requesting a transcript shall bear the cost of preparation. When the chief hearing examiner requests preparation of the transcript, the agency shall bear the cost of preparation. Upon issuance of the hearing examiner's report, the official record shall be certified to the agency.
(Emphasis added.) In addition, Minn.Stat. § 14.61 provides:
In all contested cases the decision of the officials of the agency who are to render the final decision shall not be made until the report of the hearing examiner as required by sections 14.48 to 14.56, has been made available to parties to the proceeding for at least ten days and an opportunity has been afforded to each party adversely affected to file exceptions and present argument to a majority of the officials who are to render the decision.
(Emphasis added.) Thus, when the Saint Paul Legislative Code was amended in 1980 to explicitly incorporate Minn.Stat. § 340.-135,1 that statute in turn incorporated sec*329tions of the Minnesota Administrative Procedure Act, which clearly contemplated the appointment of an impartial hearing examiner. The City of St. Paul’s 1980 amendment evidences a clear legislative intent to have hearing examiners preside at liquor license suspension or revocation hearings.
The majority opinion relies upon a 1976 opinion of the Attorney General, Op.Atty. Gen., 218g-14, Nov. 5,1976, as the basis for its contention that past interpretation of § 340.135 did not indicate that an impartial hearing before an independent hearing examiner was necessary prior to revocation of a liquor license. The Attorney General’s opinion incorrectly interprets § 340.135 for two reasons. First, it wrongly contends that the Minnesota legislature could not have intended that § 340.135 require a hearing examiner at liquor license revocation proceedings because when § 340.135 was amended in 1975 to incorporate the contested case sections of the Administrative Procedure Act the office of administrative hearings had not been created. In fact, the office of administrative hearings was created by legislative act just two days after the amendment of § 340.135.2 The legislature must have known that hearing examiners would be required in contested cases under the APA.
Second, Minn.Stat. § 645.31, subd. 2 (1982), requires that § 340.135 also adopt by reference any subsequent amendments to laws which it has incorporated. In addition, as mentioned above, the St. Paul Legislative Code was amended in 1980 to incorporate § 340.135. At that time a hearing examiner was clearly required in contested cases under the APA.
The majority also contends that imposition of APA contested case procedures, rather than the widely varying procedures formerly undertaken by municipalities, brought uniformity to liquor license proceedings. To the contrary, by ignoring the hearing examiner requirement within the APA contested case procedures, the majority opens Pandora’s box. How are we to know which of the provisions of §§ 14.57 to 14.70 are to be followed and which are not? Clearly § 14.61 is not. Are there other sections which may also be ignored?
An impartial hearing examiner is necessary in order to insure a fair hearing. A proceeding characterized by bitter neighborhood complaints, a possibly less than neutral city council, and a presiding council member who is not well-acquainted with evidentiary rules — all facets of the present license revocation proceeding — hardly seems impartial. Procedural fairness in the decision-making process was not possible in this case without separating the decision-making functions from those of investigation and advocacy. Thus, in order to insure fairness to the appellants and compliance with legislative directive, I believe an impartial hearing examiner should have been appointed to preside over the revocation hearing.
TODD, Justice.
I join in the dissent of Justice Scott.
YETKA, Justice.
I join in the dissent of Justice Scott.

. St. Paul, Minnesota, City Charter and Legislative Code § 310.05(7) (1981) provides:
Where the provisions of any statute or ordinance require additional notice or hearing procedures, such provisions shall be complied with and shall supersede inconsistent provisions of these chapters. This shall include, without limitation by reason of this *329specific reference, Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 364, and Minnesota Statutes, Section 340.135.

. Section 340.135 was amended by Act of June 2, 1975, ch. 231, 1975 Minn.Laws 672. The office of hearing examiners was created by Act of June 4, 1975, ch. 380, § 16, 1975 Minn.Laws 1285, 1293.