Jones v. Dusman

Citations

• 246 Pa. 513
• 92 A. 707
• 1914 Pa. LEXIS 545

Syllabus

<p>Public officers — Fees—De facto officers — De jure officers — Fees received by de facto officer — Recovery.</p> <p>1. The salary and emoluments of a'public official attach to the office itself, and not to the individual discharging the duties of the office, except as he is an officer de jure. This rule applies to every public office, unless excepted by statutory provision.</p> <p>2. A de jure public officer may maintain an action of assumpsit against a de facto officer to recover fees received by the latter during the period when he occupied the office to which the de jure officer was entitled; but the de facto officer is entitled to retain the salary as against tbe rest of the world, including the municipality which has paid it.</p> <p>3. A statement of claim alleged that plaintiff was authorized by law to collect taxes in a certain school district and to receive fees and emoluments for making such collections, but that during a part of plaintiff’s term of office he had been prevented from collecting taxes and receiving fees therefor by the school controllers of the district, who had illegally appointed defendant tax collector for such district; that defendant had received fees for collecting taxes to the amount of $1,794.42, and that thereafter defendant had been ousted from the office of tax collector of said district in quo warranto proceedings. Plaintiff sought to recover the fees received by defendant for collecting taxes. Held, the lower court erred in sustaining a demurrer to plaintiff’s statement of claim and in entering judgment for the defendant.</p>