Court Opinion

ID: 9581992
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 22:21:07.683928+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:37:22.475741
License: Public Domain

*205On Motion for Rehearing.
The retirement systems argue that the state is not bound by laws unless named therein or unless the law is indubitably applicable to the state. Code § 102-109. From this they argue that the lien for taxes did not attach on January 1 of the years in which the retirement systems acquired the properties (see Division 5) because the retirement systems are not “taxpayers liable to tax” within the meaning of Code Ann. § 91A-252 (formerly Code Ann. § 92-5708).
Code Ann. § 91A-252 provides in pertinent part: “. . . liens for all taxes due ... any county or municipality in the State shall cover the property of taxpayers liable to tax, from the time fixed by law for valuation of the property in each year until such taxes are paid----”
When the liens attached on January 1, the mortgagors were “taxpayers liable to tax” and when the retirement systems foreclosed later in the year, they took the properties subject to the taxes for those years. Code § 102-109 is not applicable because the liens attached to the properties before the retirement systems foreclosed. We deal here with the passage of title to realty rather than “the passage of law” within the meaning of Code § 102-109. Certainly the state will not be heard to argue that if Doe owns Blackacre, the state can acquire title from Roe notwithstanding laws which say that only Doe can convey title to Blackacre.

Motion for rehearing denied.