Sebastian Cotton & Grain, Ltd. v. Willacy County Appraisal District

492 S.W.3d 824, 2016 WL 1732824, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 4376
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedApril 28, 2016
DocketNUMBER 13-14-00574-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 492 S.W.3d 824 (Sebastian Cotton & Grain, Ltd. v. Willacy County Appraisal District) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sebastian Cotton & Grain, Ltd. v. Willacy County Appraisal District, 492 S.W.3d 824, 2016 WL 1732824, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 4376 (Tex. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

OPINION

NELDAV. RODRIGUEZ, Justice

This suit' concerns tax liability for a sizeable quantity of grain. Appellant Sebastian Cotton & Grain, Ltd. (Sebastian) contends that the grain was owned by De-Bruce Grain, Inc. (DeBruee), which should therefore be liable for taxes on the grain. Appellee, the Willacy County Appraisal District (WCAD or District), contends that Sebastian was the majority owner. The administrative tribunal — a tax authority known as the Willacy County Appraisal Review Board (Appraisal Board) — agreed with WCAD and found that Sebastian owned and’was liable for taxes on the majority of the grain. After a trial de novo, the district court also found Sebastian liable for taxes on the majority of the grain.

Sebastian notes that prior to the Appraisal Board’s order, Sebastian entered into a binding agreement with WCAD pursuant to section 1.111(e) of the Texas Tax Code (the Agreement). See Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 1.111(e) (West, Westlaw through 2015 R.S.). The Agreement states that Sebastian had no tax liability for the grain in question. Sebastian contends that this Agreement was final and could not be rescinded by WCAD or overruled by the Appraisal Board or the district court for various reasons. However* the district court found that Sebastian had committed fraud by inaccurately reporting its property to WCAD for appraisal. The court concluded that this fraud allowed WCAD to void the • Agreement. By five issues which we construe as four, Sebastian asserts that the district court erred. Sebastian first argues that WCAD failed to bring fraud to the attention of the Appraisal Board and therefore failed to exhaust its administrative remedies, destroying jurisdiction to hear that issue on appeal. Sebastian next argues that even if fraud would otherwise give WCAD the power to rescind the Agreement, WCAD and the Appraisal Board pursued an incorrect procedure for applying that power, rendering the orders of the Appraisal Board and the district court void. Third, Sebastian argues that there was, no evidence of fraud. Finally, Sebastian contends that it must be awarded attorney’s fees. We reverse and render in part and reverse and remand in part.

I. Background

In 2009, Sebastian engaged a licensed tax agent named Jerry Jurica to assist with its tax forms for the year. With Jurica’s assistance, Sebastian filed property tax forms with WCAD, which was responsible for appraising Sebastian’s property for tax purposes.1 Sebastian- claimed on its forms that all of the grain then in Sebastian’s possession was the company’s property. However, Jurica testified at trial that Sebastian did not believe it owned all of the grain and that reporting ownership of the grain was an error resulting from either miscommunieation or miscalculation.

[827]*827Jurica testified that when Sebastian learned it was being found liable for taxes on all the grain, the company was surprised and contacted him to investigate the matter. - Sebastian explained that it did not own the grain, and Sebastian gave him copies of four purchase contracts concerning the grain. According to Sebastian, the contracts showed that 86% of the grain had been purchased and was owned by DeBruce, which Sebastian ■ contended should be liable for taxes on the grain. Jurica testified that he contacted DeBruee to confirm the validity of the contracts and to explain that he was pursuing the tax protest on behalf of Sebastian. According to Jurica, he explained to DeBruce’s representative that the motion to correct ownership, if- granted, could result in an increase of DeBruce’s tax liability. DeBruce’s representative confirmed that the. company had purchased the grain and did not express resistance to Jurica’s efforts to alter the appraisal records, though the representative told Jurica that DeBruee did not believe it had tax liability on any grain in Texas.2

Having confirmed the general validity of the contracts, Jurica then contacted WCAD’s chief appraiser. Jurica produced the contracts and explained Sebastian’s situation. The chief appraiser agreed on behalf of WCAD that Sebastian should have only been taxed for $1,149,942 of property rather than the $3,141,611 that was originally appraised as Sebastian’s property. The Agreement was entered pursuant.to Texas Tax Code section 1.111(e). See Tex. Tax Code Ann, § 1.111(e). WCAD certified the change, allowed Sebastian a refund, and then shifted tax liability on $1,991,669 of grain to DeBruce, which the chief appraiser believed to be the owner.

DeBruce protested. It acknowledged the four purcháse contracts, but directed the chief appraiser’s attention to the trade rules of the National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA). DeBruce contended that the NGFA rules governed the contracts. The NGFA rules provided that legal title to the grain did not pass to the purchaser until the grain was actually delivered to the purchaser. DeBruce pointed to evidence that, on'the critical date of tax assessment, most of the $1,991,669 of grain in question had not been delivered to De-Bruce. Instead, thA majority remained in Sebastian’s possession. Thus, legal title to the majority, of the grain was held by Sebastian according to NGFA rules. The chief appraiser -was thus once again convinced that Sebastian was liable for taxes on the majority of the grain.

The chief appraiser sent notice pursuant to Texas Tax Code section 25.25(b) that he intended to once again change the determination of ownership, shifting a large part of the grain-liability back to Sebastian. See Tex. Tax Code Ann. § 25.25(b) (West, Westlaw through 2015 R.S.) Both Sebastian and DeBruce protested.3 The Appraisal Board heard- the protests and determined that Sebastian owned 69.7% of the $1,991,669 of grain which had previously been shifted to DeBruce, which amounted to $1,390,064 of taxable value. The Appraisal Board expressly relied upon section 25.25(b) as authority to issue the order. See-id.

In 2012, Sebastian filed an appeal for a trial de novo ⅛ the district court. Sebastian pleaded, among other things, that séc[828]*828tion 25.25(b) did not grant WCAD or the Appraisal Board authority to override the Agreement and increase Sebastian’s individual liability. In its answer, WCAD generally denied -Sebastian’s claims and specially denied Sebastian’s allegations concerning section 25.25(b) authority. In August 2013, WCAD amended its answer to plead, for the first time, that Sebastian had committed fraud in procuring the Agreement. WCAD pleaded that the Agreement was voidable because of the fraud.

The district court conducted a bench trial, at which it heard evidence from Sebastian’s then-owner Tommy Funk and Sebastian’s tax agent Jerry Juriea. The trial court also received testimony from WCAD’s chief appraiser. The district court upheld WCAD’s determination that ■Sebastian was liable for 69.7% of the $1,991,669 of grain and entered findings of fact. Sebastian appeals the trial court’s judgment.

II. Jurisdiction & Exhaustion op Administrative Remedies

. By its first issue, Sebastian contests whether the issue of fraud was properly before the -trial -court. Sebastian notes that the district court relied upon fraud as a basis for its judgment in favor of WCAD.

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492 S.W.3d 824, 2016 WL 1732824, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 4376, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sebastian-cotton-grain-ltd-v-willacy-county-appraisal-district-texapp-2016.