Hanover Township School District's Audit

Citations

• 265 Pa. 157
• 108 A. 656
• 1919 Pa. LEXIS 517

Syllabus

<p>School law — Contracts—Failure to advertise — Directors — Surcharge — Payments of money — Ratification—Auditors—Filing report — Notice—Jurisdiction—Waiver of objection — Acts of May 18, 1911, P. L. 809, l¡-28, and June 9, 1911, P. L. 865.</p> <p>1. Where the auditors of the accounts of school directors file their report in the court of common pleas and file a copy with the school board as provided by the Act of May 18, 1911, P. L. 309, the directors cannot object that the court of common pleas was without jurisdiction, because the auditors did not file their report in the court of quarter sessions as provided by the Act of June 9, 1911, P. L. 865, and notify the directors of a surcharge before filing their report, as provided by the Act of May 18, 1911, where it appears that the directors had actual notice of the report and surcharge, and made no objection to the jurisdiction until after their appearance in the common pleas and trial on the merits, and it also appears that they were not in fact harmed, or that any technical right was lost by them, through the action of the auditors.</p> <p>2. In such a ease, if the directors had failed to appear, the want of notice to which they were entitled under the act, would have been a valid defense, but, having appeared, they submitted themselves to the jurisdiction of the court.</p> <p>3. Auditors may surcharge school directors with improper payments made during the fiscal year, although such payments were made on contracts entered into by such directors, previous to the beginning of the year covered by the account.</p> <p>4. School directors may be surcharged with illegal payments of school moneys, although the records of the board do not show that they actually voted for or approved the payments, if it appears that they were present at the meetings, made no objections to the payments, and the circumstances are such that the court may assume that each member voted for or approved the payments, or subsequently ratified th