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CALHOUN, solicitor-general, ex rel. CHAPMAN, v. GULF OIL CORPORATION et al.

Supreme Court of Georgia1939-11-15No. No. 13038
189 Ga. 414

Summary

Holding. Where a citizen-complainant initiates an equity suit challenging a municipal authority's disqualification to decide a nuisance question, but then formally demands that the same authority abate the nuisance under statutory procedure, the citizen waives the disqualification argument and forfeits the right to continue the equity action; any subsequent remedy must proceed through certiorari review of the municipal decision. The judgment is affirmed.

A solicitor-general, acting at the request of a citizen, brought an equity suit to abate a public nuisance allegedly created by a defendant's use of a city street under a contract with the city. The citizen-complainant claimed the city authorities were disqualified from deciding the nuisance question because they had authorized the complained-of activity through their contract. While this equity proceeding was pending, the citizen formally demanded that the city authorities abate the nuisance under the statutory procedure available to municipalities. The court held that by invoking the city's decision-making authority through this statutory demand, the citizen waived his right to rely on the disqualification argument that had justified the equity suit.

Once the citizen pursued the statutory remedy with the city authorities, that choice became binding. If the city's decision proved unfavorable, his recourse would have been to seek certiorari review of the municipal decision, not to restart the equity proceeding. This remained true even if the citizen had declared his intention to return to equity if the city ruled against him.

Summary generated by law.co from the public-domain opinion. The opinion text itself is public domain.

Key issues

  • Judicial jurisdiction over nuisance abatement when municipal authorities are allegedly disqualified
  • Waiver of disqualification defense through invocation of alternative statutory remedy
  • Rights of citizens to challenge public nuisances when city authorities granted the complained-of activity
  • Proper forum and procedure after a municipality decides a nuisance question

Procedural posture

The case involves an appeal of a decision in an equity suit brought by the solicitor-general at a citizen's instance to abate a public nuisance allegedly created under municipal authority.

Authorities cited

No cited authorities resolved to law.co cases yet.

Opinion

majority opinion

Jenkins, Justice.

1. “If a nuisance complained of shall exist in a town or city under the government of a mayor, . . aider-men, . . or a common council . . , such nuisance, by and with the advice of said aldermen, . . [or] council ; . may be abated and removed by order of said mayor.” Code, § 72-401. “If the nuisance [is] a public one merely, and no private individual suffered special damage therefrom, then the proceedings to abate the same should [be] in the name of the city, acting upon the motion of the corporate body itself, or in the name of the city upon the application of some citizen.” Trust Co. of Ga. v. Ray, 125 Ga. 485, 486 (54 S. E. 145). Where a statutory proceeding under the Code, § 72-401, might have been brought in the name of the city, upon the application of a citizen, to abate a public nuisance from which he has suffered no special damage, but it is made to appear that the nuisance complained of consists in the alleged use of a public street by a defendant lessee under a contract with the city, and that accordingly the city authorities, by reason of granting the permit for the alleged nuisance, are disqualified from acting as triors of the question whether such use of the city street constituted a nuisance, a court of equity would have jurisdiction of a suit brought in the name of the solicitor-general at the instance and on the information of such a citizen. Code, § 72-202; Hill v. McBurney Oil Co., 112 Ga. 788, 790 (38 S. E. 42, 52 L. R. A. 398); Williamson v. Souter, 172 Ga. 364 (3), 365 (157 S. E. 463); Broomhead v. Grant, 83 Ga. 451 (10 S. E. 116); Mayor &c. of Columbus v. Jaques, 30 Ga. 506 (2, 3), 509.

2. “Parties, by consent express or implied, may not give jurisdiction to the court as to the person or subject-matter of the suit. It may, however, be waived, in so far as the rights of the parties are concerned, but not so as to prejudice third persons.” Code, § 24-112. As to the qualification of judges and jurors, even though having an “interest in the cause,” unless objection is made, see Code, §§ 24-111, 59-716.

3. In accordance with the foregoing principles, where a suit for injunction was instituted in the name of the solicitor-general at the instance and on the information and affidavit of verification of a citizen and taxpayer of a city, to abate a nuisance on account of an alleged encroachment in a city street, in which it was alleged that the city authorities were disqualified to determine the question, because the alleged encroachment was made by and under the authority of a written contract between the defendants and the city authorities, but where, pending the determination of such equitable proceeding, the complaining citizen, as the active movant in the proceeding, after informing the court of his intention so to do, actually entered his formal demand upon the city authorities to abate the nuisance in accordance with the prescribed statutory procedure as to a municipality, such action on the part of the complaining citizen amounted to a waiver of the disqualification of the governing authorities to pass upon the question at issue, so far as his own rights were concerned, and consequently to a renunciation of his right to further maintain the equitable procedure based upon such disqualification, which had thus in effect become .functus officio. Having invoked a decision by the city authorities under the statutory procedure, his remedy after an adverse decision would have been by certiorari, which he could have maintained in the name of the city on his application and at his instance (see Mayor &c. of Montezuma v. Minor, 70 Ga. 191 (2), 193), and not by a resumption of the equitable proceeding, founded upon the original disqualification of the municipal authorities. This is true irrespective of any declaration or intimation by the complaining citizen to the court or to the city authorities, in his statutory demand to remove, that he would resume his equitable remedy in the event of an adverse decision by the city authorities.

Judgment affirmed.

All the Justices concur.