Berne Corp. v. Government of the Virgin Islands

50 V.I. 655, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 69247
CourtDistrict Court, Virgin Islands
DecidedSeptember 11, 2008
DocketCivil Nos. 2000-141, 2000-167, 2001-151, 2001-155, 2001-181, 2001-196, 2001-197, 2001-228, 2002-057
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 50 V.I. 655 (Berne Corp. v. Government of the Virgin Islands) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, Virgin Islands primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Berne Corp. v. Government of the Virgin Islands, 50 V.I. 655, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 69247 (vid 2008).

Opinion

GÓMEZ, Chief Judge

MEMORANDUM OPINION

(September 11, 2008)

Before the Court is the motion of the defendants, the Government of the Virgin Islands (the “Government”); Roy Martin, in his official capacity as Tax Assessor (“Martin”); and the Board of Tax Review (collectively referred to as the “Defendants”), to lift a permanent injunction issued by this Court. The Defendants seek relief pursuant to Rule 60(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (“Rule 60(b)”).

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. The Berne Litigation

In 1936, Congress promulgated legislation to harmonize property taxes in the U.S. Virgin Islands across different types and uses of land and to [660]*660reduce the burden of taxation on land in productive use (the “1936 Act”).1 See 48 U.S.C. §§ 1401-1401e. The 1936 Act provided that “all taxes on real property in the Virgin Islands shall be computed on the basis of the actual value of such property .. . .” Id. at § 1401a. Despite that provision, over a period of time the Defendants assessed the value of commercial properties based on replacement value, rather than the actual value. Consequently, plaintiffs Berne Corporation and B&B Corporation (collectively referred to as “Berne”) sued Martin in his official capacity under Section 1 of the Civil Rights Act of 1871, 42 U.S.C. § 1983, and Title 5, Section 80 of the Virgin Islands Code (“Section 80”).2 Berne sought an injunction to require Martin to assess its property on its actual value, as required by the 1936 Act.

On September 21, 2000, this Court ruled that the 1936 Act “creates a federally protected right actionable pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983.” See Berne Corporation v. Gov’t of the Virgin Islands, 120 F. Supp. 2d 528, 535 (D.V.I. 2000), aff’d 105 Fed. Appx. 324 (3d Cir. 2004). The Court further held that Berne had standing to bring its suit under Section 80 on behalf of all similarly situated taxpayers to restrain violations of the statute requiring property taxes to be based on actual value. See id. In that same decision, the Court preliminarily enjoined the Government and Martin from assessing and collecting commercial property taxes in violation of the 1936 Act.

Following the Court’s ruling, the parties negotiated a settlement (the “Berne Settlement”), which the Court approved on December 19, 2000. The Berne Settlement provided that the Government and Martin would bring the Virgin Islands real property tax system into compliance with the federal requirement that property be assessed at its actual value.3 Pursuant to the Berne Settlement, the parties stipulated to the selection of a Special [661]*661Master. The Court subsequently approved the Special Master selected by the parties.

While the new tax assessment system was being implemented pursuant to the Berne Settlement, the other plaintiffs in this matter (Berne and these other plaintiffs are collectively referred to as the “Plaintiffs”) filed lawsuits in this Court to challenge their tax bills based on the pre-Berne Settlement tax assessment system. One of those Plaintiffs, Equivest St. Thomas, Inc., successor to Bluebeard’s Castle, Inc. (“Equivest”), moved for a preliminary injunction to enjoin the collection of its 2000 property tax bills. The Defendants thereafter filed a motion to stay all discovery except document production, and, as this Court noted, “made a binding judicial admission that ‘pursuant to the terms of that settlement, all commercial property in the Virgin Islands is to be appraised at actual value in accordance with [the 1936 Act] . . . and in accordance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice.’ ” See Berne Corp. v. Gov’t of the V.I., 262 F. Supp. 2d 540, 549 (D.V.I. 2003) (quoting Defs.’ Mot. to Stay Disc., at ¶ 1 (filed in Civ. No. 2001-155)). The Defendants further agreed to extend the Berne Settlement to residential properties, and asserted its willingness to settle all of the newly-filed cases. See id.

B. The May 12, 2003 Decree

The Government’s subsequent settlement negotiations with Equivest proved fruitless. As a result, Equivest renewed its motion for a preliminary injunction. The Court scheduled a trial on the merits.

On May 12, 2003, the Court issued a permanent injunction (the “May 12, 2003 Decree”). The May 12, 2003 Decree enjoined the Defendants [662]*662from assessing any and all real property in the Virgin Islands. The Court also enjoined the Defendants from requiring the payment of real property tax bills. The Court required satisfaction of two primary conditions before the government could assess real property and issue tax bills. The first condition was the establishment of a property tax system that reliably and credibly assessed and taxed all real property based on its actual value. See id. at 575. The second condition required the Government to demonstrate to the Court’s satisfaction that it has a functioning Board of Tax Review that consistently holds hearings and reaches determinations on appeals within sixty days.4 See id. The Court also held that the Government could issue bills based on the assessment values for the 1998 calendar year reflected in the 1999 tax bills if it provided a mechanism to adjust the assessments and bills retroactively. Thereafter, the Legislature of the Virgin Islands passed Act No. 6586 (“Act 6586”), which provided for such a mechanism. That act was signed into law on July 14, 2003.

In that same Order, the Court further held that the Berne Settlement applied to all real property owners in the Virgin Islands, and that the Defendants had breached the Berne Settlement by, inter alia, failing to fund the tax reassessment system. Consequently, the Court ordered specific performance of the Berne Settlement.5 See id. at 574-75.

On August 13, 2003, on the Defendants’ motion, the Court modified the May 12, 2003 Decree. The Court found that, in light of Act 6586, the Government had “acted sufficiently to provide relief for the Territory’s taxpayers and . . . that the Government is entitled to collect revenue from property taxes.” In re Tax Litig., 276 F. Supp. 2d 435, 436 (D.V.I. 2003). Therefore, the Court modified the May 12, 2003, Decree “to allow the Government to issue tax bills based on the 1998 assessments reflected in the 1999 tax bills.” Id. The Court noted that the Decree “shall remain unmodified and in full effect for all parties to this litigation.” Id. Aside [663]*663from the August 13, 2003, modification, the May 12, 2003, Decree remains in full force and effect.

C.

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Berne Corp. v. Government of the Virgin Islands
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Bluebook (online)
50 V.I. 655, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 69247, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/berne-corp-v-government-of-the-virgin-islands-vid-2008.