Court Opinion

ID: 9546204
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 17:26:08.203429+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:16:08.288382
License: Public Domain

SHEPARD, Justice,
dissenting.
The majority opinion reverses a district court and county commissioners decision made on the merits of the claim without discussing the merits of the claim. The reversal is based solely on the delay by the county commissioners in rejecting the claim. The majority equates the delay in action by the county commissioners to a delay by claimant in making the claim. Therein I disagree.
There may be sound policy reasons for requiring a claim to be made within a given time period. Information regarding the validity of a claim, particularly the medical indigency status, may be made difficult, if not impossible, by the passage of time. In the instant ease there is no indication that the claimant’s position had changed or been prejudiced because of the delay by the county commissioners. Presumably, the information had already been gathered and presented, and, presumably because of medical indigency, no bills had been paid by claimant. Hence, I see no resulting prejudice to claimant. Here we deal with public moneys which should only be expended after it has been ascertained that a claim is meritorious.