Court Opinion

ID: 7809944
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2022-09-07 17:11:39.225692+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T16:30:26.556463
License: Public Domain

Per Curiam. Road Improvement District No. 1 of Perry County, one of the appellees, is a road improvement district formed by an order of the county court of Perry County pursuant to Act No. 338 of the General Assembly of 1915 (p. 1400), and the other appellees are commissioners of the district. Appellants own property in the district and instituted this action in the chancery court of Perry County for the purpose of obtaining a decree enjoining the commissioners from proceeding, under an order of the county court, to construct certain lateral roads and extensions not described in the original plans for the improvement. It appears from the pleadings that after the organization of the district, the plans were, altered so as to provide for additional lateral roads and extensions of the originally specified roads, and that those plans have been approved by an order of the county court, and that the commissioners are about to proceed with the construction of the roads and the additional laterals and extensions pursuant to the altered plans. This litigation involves an attack on the validity of the proceedings on two grounds, one, that the statute does not, when properly interpreted, authorize the alteration of the original plans so as to provide for the construction of additional laterals or extensions not mentioned in the original plans which would constitute a substantial variance of those plans, and the other ground, that if the statute is an attempt to confer such authority, it is ineffectual because it contains no provision for assessing additional benefits arising from the added improvements. The chancery court upheld the validity of the proceedings and sustained the demurrer to the complaint. Two of the justices of this court, Mr. Justice Hart and Mr. Justice Smith, are of the opinion that the first of the grounds of attack stated above should be sustained, that the proceedings looking to an alteration of the original plans are, for that reason, invalid, and that the decree of the chancery court should be reversed; two of the justices, Mr. Justice Wood and Mr. Justice Hart, are of the opinion that the second ground of attack stated above is well taken and that the proceedings are, for that reason, invalid, and that the decree should be reversed; Mr. Justice Wood does not agree with the other two justices as to their conclusion on the first ground of attack, and Mr. Justice Smith does not agree with the other two justices as to the second ground of attack. The Chief Justice and Mr. Justice Humphreys are of the opinion that both grounds of attack are untenable, that the proceedings are valid, and that the decree should be affirmed. A majority of the justices entertain views on each of the points of attack which, if separately involved, would result in affirmance of the decree, but since the majority are, on different grounds, in favor of reversal, that must be the net result of their divergent views on the points involved. It thus appears from the above recital that three of the justices are of the opinion that the decree should be reversed, but they do not agree on the ground of reversal. The decree is, therefore, reversed and the cause remanded with directions to the chancery court to overrule the demurrer to the complaint, and for further proceedings.