47 Vt. 333 | Vt. | 1875
The opinion of the court was delivered by
It was the duty of the listers of the town of Bakersfield in the year 1870, to make a quinquennial appraisal of all the real estate there, at its fair cash value, and to make a list thereof; Gen. Sts. 519, § 20 ; and to attach to the list, a certificate signed by them or a majority of them, verified by oath, setting forth that they had set down all the real estate situate in that town, according to the best of their information, and had estimated the value of such real estate at such sums as they would appraise the same in payment of a just debt due from a solvent debtor. Gen. Sts. 522, § 35. It is the duty of appraisers in appraising land in payment of a debt, to appraise at its true and just value in money. Gen. Sts. 365, § 21. This is the same as the fair cash value ; and the listers in making and making oath to such a certificate, would, in effect, certify and swear that they had faithfully performed the duties required of them by law in making that appraisal. The certificate and oath would be an assurance to each tax-payer that the listers had acted faithfully in the performance of their duties, and be a safeguard against favoritism or prejudice. Without the oath to the certificate, an im
The annual list of 1873 appears to have been made up, certified, and sworn to according to the provisions of the law in respect to such lists; and it is argued that the defect in the quinquennial is, as to this list, cured by that certificate and oath; and Blodgett v. Holbrook, 39 Vt. 336, is relied upon in support of that position. But the listers of 1873 do not appear to have made and sworn to any certificate except the appropriate one for annual lists. Such a certificate would set forth that the listers had set down all the real estate, and appraised all additions and made all deductions required by law, but not that they had appraised the real estate other than the additions and deductions, at all. It may be that if the listers had in any year treated the quinquenuial appraisal as void, and, under § 24, page 520, Gen. Sts., made, certified, and sworn to an appraisal and list of all the real estate, it would not be necessary for the listers, in after years, before the next real estate appraisal, to appraise it again in making up the annual lists ; but no opinion is intended to be expressed about that now. It appears in this case, that no appraisal of real estate was made after the quinquennial appraisal of 1870, consequently, there was no appraisal and list of the real estate on which this tax was made up, either sworn to in fact, or sworn to and certified as sworn to in form, as required by law. In Blod
Judgment reversed, and cause remanded.