138 Ga. 581 | Ga. | 1912
1. Where a municipal charter authorized the mayor and council to elect three ^building inspectors to discharge, certain duties, and, instead of so doing, the mayor and council passed an ordinance declaring that the superintendent of public works should be the, building inspector, that no building or repairs should be done without leave from him, and that he should have direct supervision over all such buildings and repairs and see that ordinances of the city relative thereto were complied with, if the city was otherwise liable for the conduct of the building inspector in tearing down a wall belonging to a property owner, it would not be relieved from such liability by reason of the irregularity in the election of such officer. City Council of Sheffield v. Harris, 101 Ala. 564 (14 So. 357).
2. In a suit against a municipality on account of the alleged wrongful tearing down of a wall by its building inspector under its authority, the plaintiffs’ counsel was proceeding, regularly and without unneo
(a) Under the facts in the present case, it can not be held that the ruling of the court was harmless error. The order,* granting a nonsuit was expressly based upon the admission of counsel for plaintiffs that they could not further prove action by the mayor and council “by record.” While communications to and from a municipal council are presumed to be in writing until the contrary is shown, in a ease of this kind the absence Of a writing is not conclusive evidence of the absence of action. Baker v. Scofield, 58 Ga. 182.
Judgment reversed.