Tebault v. City of New Orleans

Citations

• 108 La. 686

Syllabus

<p>Syllabus.</p> <p>assessment concerns the means employed to enforce the payment of legal and constitutional taxes, but the fact that the assessment Is illegal, or that there is no assessment, does not affect the legality or constitutionality of the tax. Hence, where the assessment, alone, is attacked, and the amount In dispute is less than that required to give jurisdiction to this court, the appeal will be dismissed. An</p> <p>On Rehearing.</p> <p>■ This court has, heretofore, held that an attack on the assessment of property for taxation is not equivalent to an attack upon the tax based on the assessment.</p> <p>That an assessment may be irregular, and yet the tax legal.</p> <p>Where the tax Is illegal, because of the absolute want of power of the tax department to Impose a tax at all, thé attack upon the tax may be cornbined witb an attack upon the assessment; but, where the attack is made upon the assessment only, it will not suffice as relates to the jurisdiction on appeal. It does not appear in the attack, upon the assessment, that the attack is also especially directed against the tax Itself.</p> <p>The jurisdiction on appeal is limited to cases in which the constitutionality or illegality “of any tax is at issue, whatever may be the amount,” and it is not to be inferred that an attack upon the assessment carries with it an attack npon the tax.</p> <p>'There is, at least, doubt as to the extent of the attack, which resolves Itself against the appeal in a case requiring that it shall be made to appear that the attack is directed against the tax. The doubt was fatal to the appeal.</p>