State ex rel. Jackson v. School District No. 1

Citations

• 80 Kan. 667
• 103 P. 136
• 1909 Kan. LEXIS 135

Syllabus

<p>SYLLABUS BY THE COURT.</p> <p>1. Statutory Construction — Directory or Mandatory Provisions — “May.” Primarily and as ordinarily used in a statute the word “may” is permissive rather than peremptory. It may be given the imperative meaning if that was the obvious intention of the legislature, but the sense in which the word is used must always be determined by the context of the act.</p> <p>:2. School Districts — Special Meetings. In the statute relating to school district meetings which provides that “special meetings may be called by the district board, or upon a petition signed by ten resident taxpayers of the district” (Gen. Stat. 1901, § 6122), the word “may” is used in its permissive sense.</p>