132 Ky. 521 | Ky. Ct. App. | 1909
Affirming.
This is a proceeding by tbe commonwealth of Kentucky, through a revennue agent, against the Kentucky Distilleries & Warehouse Company, a New Jersey corporation doing business in this state, to require it to list certain of its property alleged to have been omitted from its tax list for the years 1901 to 1905, inclusive. The appellee owns several whisky distilleries in Franklin county, and has its principal Kentucky office in Frankfort, and through the banks of that city transacts annually a considerable financial business. The progress of the case developed that there were two classes of property, and only two, which the commonwealth claimed had been omitted for taxing purposes for the years in question. The first of these consisted of the trade-marks owned and used in selling the output of appellee’s several distilleries. Among these are the “Spring Hill,” “Cedar Run” and “Arnold Spring” brands; and they, it was proved in the case, are worth, in connection with the distilleries and business to which they belong, a large sum of money. The second class or kind of property claimed to have been omitted are the several cash balances which the appellee had in banks in Frankfort on the 15th day of September of the respective fiscal years involved herein. The right to tax these two classes of property will be discussed in the order mentioned.
Is a trade-mark property within the meaning of the fiscal laws of Kentucky! Section 174 of our Constitution provides: “All property, whether owned
In Avery & Sons v. Meikle & Co., 81 Ky. 73, it is said’: “A trade-mark is a sign' or symbol primarily confined exclusively to the indication of the origin or ownership of the goods to which it may be attached, and it may be composed of any name, device, line, figure, mark, word, letter, number, or combination or arrangement of any or all of these which would serve the sole purpose of a trade-mark, .and' which no other person can adopt or use with equal truth. * * * There is no abstract right in a trade-mark. It is property only when appropriated and used to1 indicate the origin or ownership of an article or goods; and its real value consists in the confidence and' patronage of the public, secured through its instrumen
Upon the foregoing authority, we feel constrained' to hold that the trade-marks used by the appellee in connection with its several brands of whisky are not properly taxable under the revenue law of Kentucky. Nor do we think that the commonwealth established the charge that the appellee had on deposit in the several banks of Frankfort larger sums than it returned to the assessor on its tax list. It is true it was shown that on the respective fiscal days the appellee had on deposit apparently a much larger sum than it listed for taxation; but it was also shown, without contradiction, that these balances were apparent only, and not real; that before the fiscal day appbllee had in good faith drawn checks on its funds
In the case at bar the appellee produced for inspection all of the checks, which reduced its apparent
For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the circuit court is affirmed.