RATING CASE

Evening Star, Issue 20613, 13 October 1930, Page 12

RATING CASE

- POSITION OF CROWN AS MORTGAGEE [Pee United Press Association.] WELLINGTON, October 13. An important rating'ease came before tbe Court of Appeal to-day in the appeal of the Crown from tbe judgment of Mr Justic Blair, delivered in tbe case of His Majesty the King versus the Mayor of Inglewood and the Inglewood Borough Council, in August last. It appears that a discharged soldier named Marshall purchased a farm in Inglewood Borough, the unimproved value of which was £1,450. Subsequently there was registered against Marr'all’s title a memorandum of mortgage to the Crown under which there was owing at the material times £2,449 16s sd. , Marshall’s name appeared on the borough rate roll as owner and occupier, and ho paid all the rates up to May, 1925. The rates for the years ending March, 1926, 1927, and 1928 were demanded but not paid, and the statutory penalty of 10 per cent, accrued thereon, the amount then duo being £l9l 12s lOd. In March, 1928, the borough obtained judgment against Marshall for these overdue rates and costs, but in November, 1927, notice of the intention to exercise the power of sale in the mortgage was given by the Crown to Marshall, and in 1928 the Crown made various attempts to sell the property, without result. Marshall abandoned the property in December, 1927. The Crown did not give the borough notice that it had entered into possession, but the Commissioner of Crown Lands let the property for grazing rights in June, 1929. A certificate of the judgment against Marshall was forwarded to the Supreme Court at New Plymouth, and notice given to commissioner and Marshall that the property would be sold or leased by public auction after six months from that date unless the amount of the judgment and costs was paid. The Crown, in June, 1929, sold the property to a man named Lilo, and at the date of transfer the sum of £341 8s 7d was owing for rates. The question then arose as to liability of the Crown as mortgagee, and an originating summons was issued. Mr Justice Blair, in the course of his resultant judgment, held that while the borough was not entitled to proceed directly against the Crown as mortgagee, it neverthleess was entitled to exercise against the Crown all the powers of sale as conferred by section 79 o ftho Rating Act, 1925. The Crown is now appeaing from this decision. For the respondent appeared Messrs I;. M. Moss and w. Heine, and for the appellant the Solici-tor-General (Mr A. C. Fair) and Mr A. E. Currie.

On the bench .were the Chief Justice (Sir M. Myers) and Judges Herdman, Smith, and Kennedy.