McCormick v. Hanover Township

Citations

• 246 Pa. 169
• 92 A. 195
• 1914 Pa. LEXIS 489

Syllabus

<p>Muncipalities — Townships—Contracts—Powers of supervisors— Governmental powers — Business powers — Bight to employ counsel —Duration of contract for legal services — Act of March 21, 1911, P. L. 8 — Improvident contracts — Ultra vires act of supervisors— Judgment for defendant n. o. v.</p> <p>1. Municipalities, no matter how high their grade, can exercise no powers save those for which there is express statutory authority or such as are necessary to the exercise of their corporate powers and which are therefore implied.</p> <p>2. There is a clear distinction between the governmental and business or proprietary powers of municipalities. With respect, to the former, their exercise is so limited that no action taken by the governing board is binding upon its successor, whereas the latter are not subject to such limitations and may be exercised in a way that will be binding upon the municipality after the members of the contracting board have gone out of office.</p> <p>3. From the fact that townships may sue and be sued, power to employ counsel is implied, and this power they may exercise as occasion arises or they may engage counsel for a term as the judgment of the supervisors may determine, but in engaging counsel, supervisors are acting as the agents of the township and are exercising the governmental as distinguished from the proprietary or business function of the municipality.</p> <p>4. A contract between the supervisors of a township and an attorney for legal services to be rendered by the attorney for a term to begin after the commencement of a new fiscal year, when a board otherwise constituted would be in office, is beyond the power of the contracting board and is invalid. The fact that under the Act of March 21, 1911, P. L. 8, one member who ordinarily would have retired at the expiration of such year was empowered to act for another year, does not prevent the application of the rule.</p> <p>5. A contract between a township and an attorney for the renditi