Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District v. JPD, Inc.

168 S.W.3d 184, 2005 Tex. App. LEXIS 3987, 2005 WL 1231663

• Court: Court of Appeals of Texas
• Decided: May 25, 2005
• Docket: 05-03-01215-CV
• Status: Published

Opinions

OPINION

Opinion by

Justice Wright.

This appeal stems from a suit to collect delinquent taxes filed by the City of Irving (City).¹ Subsequently, Carrollton-Farm-ers Branch Independent School District (CFBISD) intervened in this lawsuit on its own behalf as a plaintiff. The trial court entered judgment in favor of appellee JPD, Inc. on its counterclaim, and CFBISD appealed.² In two points of error, CFBISD contends the trial court erred in: (1) concluding that a refund of taxes pursuant to section 42.43(a)³ of the tax code includes a refund of penalties and interest; and (2) awarding JPD its attorney’s fees. We sustain CFBISD’s second point of error. We affirm that portion of the trial court’s judgment ordering CFBISD to refund to JPD the penalties and interest paid on the incorrect appraised value. We reverse the trial court’s award of attorney’s fees and render judgment that JPD take nothing on its claim for attorney’s fees.

Background

For tax year 1999, the Dallas County Appraisal District (DCAD) appraised JPD’s property at $2,992,780.00. JPD protested this appraisal with the Dallas County Appraisal Review Board. Dissatisfied with its administrative protest, JPD filed a lawsuit on October 2, 2000 against DCAD and the appraisal review board seeking judicial review.

Seven days after JPD filed its protest lawsuit, the City sued JPD for delinquent taxes pursuant to chapter 33 of the tax code. CFBISD intervened as a plaintiff in the delinquency lawsuit. JPD filed an answer. Nothing further occurred in this lawsuit until JPD filed its counterclaim on December 20, 2001.

Meanwhile, both the City and CFBISD persisted in their efforts to collect taxes from JPD, obtaining several tax warrants. To avoid execution of the tax warrants, JPD made partial payments of the taxes, penalties, and interest assessed on the original appraisal. CFBISD and the City collected $73,463.80 from JPD before the appraised value was finally determined to be over two million dollars less than the original appraised value.

On September 4, 2001, JPD entered into an agreed judgment with DCAD and the appraisal review board lowering the appraised value of JPD’s property from $2,992,780.00 to $186,300.00. Neither party appealed this judgment. Once the property’s appraised value was reduced, CFBISD’s property tax on the property was reduced from $48,294.49 to $3,006.32. By the time the agreed judgment was entered reducing the property’s appraised value, JPD had paid CFBISD $54,104.85 in taxes, penalties, and interest. CFBISD refunded $31,046.24 to JPD. CFBISD did not refund the penalties and interest JPD paid on the incorrect, higher appraised value of $2,992,780.00.

JPD filed a counterclaim in the delinquency suit seeking a refund of the portion of the penalties and interest calculated on the incorrect appraised value. This case was tried to the court on stipulated facts. The trial court granted judgment in favor of JPD ordering CFBISD and the City to refund JPD the difference between the penalties and interest paid and the penalties and interest due based on the current tax roll. The trial court also awarded JPD its attorney’s fees. ■ CFBISD timely appealed.

Penalties and Interest

In its first issue, CFBISD contends the trial court erred in concluding that the tax code is ambiguous as to whether the term “taxes” as used in reference to any refund due under section 42.43(a) of the tax code includes penalties and interest and erred in resolving that ambiguity in favor of JPD.

In a case tried to the court on stipulated facts, the reviewing court generally may not find any facts not conforming to the agreed statement, unless the agreement provides otherwise. State Bar v. Faubion, 821 S.W.2d 208, 205 (Tex.App.Houston [14th Dist.] 1991, writ denied). Accordingly, we will, review only the correctness of the trial court’s application of law to the stipulated facts, and will not infer or find any facts absent from the parties’ stipulation. See Rabinowitz v. Cadle Co. II, Inc., 998 S.W.2d 796, 797 (Tex.App.-Dallas 1999, pet. denied).

A property owner who disagrees with an appraisal has the right to an administrative protest as provided in chapter 41 of the tax code. See Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 41.41(a) (Vernon 2001). If the property owner is dissatisfied with the determination of his protest, he has the right to judicial review as provided in chapter 42 of the tax code. See Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.01 (Vernon 2001). A property’s appraised value may be determined only in a chapter 42 suit brought by the taxpayer. Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.09 (Vernon 2001). Once a chapter 42 review is determined, the chief appraiser must correct the appraisal roll and other appropriate records to reflect the final determination, and the assessor for each taxing unit must, in turn, correct its tax roll. Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.41(a) & (b) (Vernon Supp. 2004-05).

A taxing unit’s legal right to taxes claimed in a chapter 33 lawsuit depends upon the final determination of the appraised value of the property. Because a taxpayer cannot defend a lawsuit for delinquent taxes on the ground that the appraised value of the property is incorrect, it necessarily follows that judgment in the chapter 33 delinquency lawsuit be deferred until the chapter 42 appraisal appeal is resolved. See New v. Dallas Appraisal Review BcL, 734 S.W.2d 712, 717 (Tex.App.-Dallas 1987, writ denied); Valero Transmission Co. v. San Marcos Consolidated Indep. Sch. Dist., 770 S.W.2d 648, 651 (Tex.App.-Austin 1989, writ denied). The amount of delinquent taxes owed, including penalties and interest, cannot be determined until the valuation of the property is finally determined. See New, 734 S.W.2d at 717.

In a suit for delinquent taxes, a taxing unit’s recovery of taxes, penalties, and interest is assessed from the current tax roll.⁴ If a taxpayer has filed a chapter 42 lawsuit and the appraised value is subsequently lowered, the tax roll is corrected. The corrected tax roll becomes the current tax roll for purposes of a lawsuit for delinquent taxes. See Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.41(a) & (b) (Vernon Supp: 2004-05). Accordingly, a taxing unit is entitled to penalties and interest only on the corrected amount.

JPD’s chapter 42 suit against the appraisal district resulted in a final agreed judgment that neither party appealed. Following the conclusion of its chapter 42 lawsuit, JPD came back into the chapter 33 delinquent tax lawsuit with the corrected tax roll and counterclaimed for a refund of the portion of the penalties and interest it had already paid on the erroneous appraised value. In its counterclaim, JPD states that a final judgment had been entered in its protest suit, resulting in a lower appraised value of its property. Based on the corrected tax roll, JPD sought a refund of the excessive penalties and interest previously paid. The parties made numerous stipulations, including: (1) the value of JPD’s property was $186,300.00 as finally determined in JPD’s chapter 42 lawsuit; (2) the appraisal district corrected its tax rolls to reflect the lower value; and (3) the amount of penalties and interest calculated on the corrected appraised value in accordance with chapter 33.

The only issue before the trial court in this suit was the proper amount of penalties and interest due based on the current and corrected tax roll as stipulated by the parties.⁵ The evidence before the trial court established that JPD paid penalties and interest in excess of what CFBISD was entitled to in its delinquency lawsuit. Thus, in the tax delinquency lawsuit that is currently before us, the trial court correctly held that JPD was obligated to pay penalties and interest only upon the corrected appraisal value.

It is true that the parties, both in the trial court and in this Court, primarily focused their arguments on the meaning of the term “taxes” as used in section 42.43(a). However, this Court’s disposition is grounded in an argument made to the trial court. JPD argued at trial that penalties and interest cannot be calculated until a property’s appraised value is finally determined.⁶ Once the appraised value is finally determined, the tax rolls are corrected and the current tax roll is used to calculate penalties and interest recoverable in a delinquency lawsuit under chapter 33. Thus, even assuming, without deciding, the trial court erred in its determination that “taxes” is ambiguous as used in section 42.43(a), it does not mandate a different result because the trial court’s judgment is correct under another legal theory. See Custom Leasing, Inc. v. Texas Bank & Trust Co. of Dallas, 516 S.W.2d 138, 142 (Tex.1974) (duty of the appellate court to sustain trial court’s judgment if it is correct on any theory of law applicable to the case); Lone Star Salt Water Disposal Co. v. R.R. Comm’n, 800 S.W.2d 924, 931 (Tex.App.-Austin 1990, no writ) (stating appellate courts are under duty to uphold correct lower court judgment on any legal theory, even if lower court has relied on incorrect legal theory and even if lower court has given incorrect reason for its judgment). Based on the current tax roll and the parties’ stipulations, the trial court properly awarded JPD a refund of penalties and interest in excess of those calculated on the current tax roll.

Attorney’s Fees

In its counterclaim, JPD also requested attorney’s fees incurred as a result of CFBISD’s failure to pay the amount of tax refund due. Chapter 33 does not provide for a taxpayer to recover attorney’s fees in a delinquency suit. At trial, JPD’s attorney stated that JPD was requesting attorney’s fees pursuant to section 42.43(d) of the tax code. Pursuant to section 42.43(d), a property owner who prevails in a suit to compel a refund required by 42.43 that is filed on or after the 180th day after the appraisal roll is corrected is entitled to attorney’s fees. Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.43(d) (Vernon 2001). The appraisal district corrected the tax rolls on September 26, 2001. JPD filed its counterclaim against CFBISD on December 20, 2001, a little more than three months before the 180th day after the correction to the tax rolls. Thus, even if JPD’s counterclaim in the delinquency lawsuit is viewed as a suit to compel within the meaning of section 42.43(d), JPD is not entitled to its attorney’s fees. For these reasons, we conclude the trial court erred in awarding attorney’s fees to JPD.

Accordingly, we affirm that portion of the trial court’s judgment ordering CFBISD to pay a refund of penalties and interest in the amount of $14,530.78 plus interest to JPD. We reverse the portion of the trial court’s judgment awarding attorney’s fees to JPD and render judgment that JPD take nothing on its claim for attorney’s fees.

Dissenting Opinion by Justice LANG-MIERS.

1 . Chapter 33 of the tax code provides for a taxing unit to sue for delinquent taxes. See Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 33.41 (Vernon 2001 & 2004-05 Supp.).

2 . The trial court ordered the City of Irving to pay JPD a refund of the excess penalties and interest received from JPD by the City. The City of Irving is not a party to this appeal.

3 . See Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 42.43(a) (Vernon 2001).

4 . Section 33.47(a) provides:

(a) In a suit to collect a delinquent tax, the taxing unit's current tax roll and delinquent tax roll or certified copies of the entries showing the property and the amount of the tax and penalties imposed and interest accrued constitute prima facie evidence that each person charged with a duty relating to the imposition of the tax has complied with all requirements of law and that the amount of tax alleged to be delinquent against the property and the amount of penalties and interest due on that tax as listed are the correct amounts.

Tex Tax Code Ann. § 33.47(a) (Vernon 2001).

5 . The dissent contends that neither party appeals the issues involved in the chapter 33 lawsuit. To the contrary, the amount of penalties and interest owed to a taxing unit is a key issue in a chapter 33 lawsuit. Chapter 33 provides the relief JPD requested in its counterclaim. Consequently, we have analyzed this appeal under chapter 33.

6 . At trial, JPD argued that in a delinquent tax suit, a property’s appraised value must first be finally determined before calculating penalties and interest recoverable in a tax delinquency suit:

You look at the New case which says you can’t calculate those penalties, interest, and attorney’s fees unless you have an assessed value, an appraised value that’s ultimately decided to be the market value. So you can't — you can’t calculate penalties, interest, and attorney’s fees until you have a Constitutional mandated market value. And in this case, there wasn’t until the judgment came down.