United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Arizona v. Copper Queen Consol. Mining Co., 233 U.S. 87 (1914)

Arizona v. Copper Queen Consolidated Mining Company

No. 89

Argued March 3, 4, 1914

Decided April 6, 1914

233 U.S. 87

Syllabus

Where the Supreme Court of a territory has made a statement of facts in the nature of a special verdict, this Court must consider the case when it comes here on appeal upon that finding.

In exercising appellate jurisdiction over the territorial courts in cases involving construction of a statute by the territory, this Court will not, in the absence of manifest error, reverse the action of the territorial court in regard to such construction, and so held as to the construction placed by the Supreme Court of Arizona on the statutes of that territory defining the powers and duties of the Board of Equalization.

Page 233 U. S. 88

In this case, held that payments of taxes made under an attempted compromise agreement did not operate to estop the taxpayer from contesting the legality of the action of the taxing authorities in increasing the assessments on the property.

In this case, this Court affirms the judgment of the Supreme Court of the Territory of Arizona that the Board of Equalization had no power under the statute of the territory to raise the separate assessed valuation of certain mining claim of groups which had originally been assessed en masse.

13 Ariz. 198 affirmed.

The facts, which involve the construction of the statutes of Arizona regarding valuation assessments for taxation, are stated in the opinion.