State ex rel. Irvine v. Brooks

84 P. 488, 14 Wyo. 393, 1906 Wyo. LEXIS 19
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 26, 1906
StatusPublished
Cited by23 cases

This text of 84 P. 488 (State ex rel. Irvine v. Brooks) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State ex rel. Irvine v. Brooks, 84 P. 488, 14 Wyo. 393, 1906 Wyo. LEXIS 19 (Wyo. 1906).

Opinion

Beard, Justice.

The relator, William C. Irvine, commenced this action in this court against the defendant Bryant B. Brooks as Governor of the state, praying that a writ of mandamus be issued to the Governor commanding him to deliver to relator [407]*407a certificate of his election as State Treasurer for the period of four years from and after the first Monday in January, 1905. The allegations of the plaintiff’s petition, so far as necessary to an understanding of the questions presented, are in substance: That at the regular election held in the state in the year 1902,'one Henry G. Hay was duly elected to the office of State Treasurer for the term of four years; that on September 19, 1903, said Hay resigned and the relator was thereupon appointed by the Governor to fill the vacancy in said office until the next general election occurring in 1904. That at that election the relator was duly elected to the office of State Treasurer; that the votes were duly canvassed and the state canvassing board duly certified the result of said election to the Secretary of State, which certificate showed that relator had been elected to said office. That the Secretary of State, who was acting as Governor, by reason of the death of the Governor, which occurred April 28, 1903, did on the tenth day of December, 1904, and after the state canvassing board had filed its certificate in the office of the Secretary of State, sign, seal and cause to be left upon the desk of relator a certificate reciting that relator had been lawfully elected as Treasurer of the State of Wyoming for the remainder of the unexpired term of Henry G. Hay, resigned. That as soon as relator discovered said certificate, on or about December 26, 1904, he requested the Secretary of State, who was still acting as Governor, to execute and deliver to him a certificate showing his right to hold said office of Treasurer for the period of four years from and after the first Monday in January, 1905, which the Secretary of State, acting as Governor, refused to do. That the defendant, Bryant B. Brooks, was duly elected Governor of the state at the general election in 1904 as the successor of Governor DeForest Richards, deceased, and that he qualified and entered upon the discharge of his duties as Governor January 2, 1905. That on or about January 18, 1905, the relator demanded of and from the defendant, as Governor of the state a certificate of election showing his election to the office of State Treas[408]*408urer and his right to hold the same for the period of four years from and after the first Monday in January, 1905, which the Governor refused to issue.

On the presentation of the petition to the Chief Justice of this court an alternative writ of mandamus was issued against the defendant and made returnable to the court. The defendant appeared by the Attorney General of the state and filed a demurrer to the petition and writ upon the following grounds:

“1. That the court has no jurisdiction of the person of the defendant, or the subject of the action.
“2. That the petition and writ filed herein do not state facts sufficient to. constitute a cause of action.'4

Two questions have been presented for our consideration, and have been ably argued by counsel, viz:

1. Has this court jurisdiction to issue a writ of mandamus against the chief executive of the state?

2. What is the length of plaintiff’s term of office?

On the first question the Attorney General contends' that the court is without jurisdiction for the reason that under our form of government the powers of government are divided into three distinct departments; the legislative, executive and judicial, and no person or collection of persons charged with the exercise of powers properly belonging to one of these departments shall exercise any powers properly belonging to either of the others, except as expressly directed or permitted by the constitution; and that the assumption of jurisdiction by the court to issue a writ of mandamus against the Governor requiring him to execute and deliver a certificate of election in this case would be exercising powers by the court which properly belong to the executive department of the government. If the duty enjoined upon the governor in this instance is political or executive and is such a duty’ as involves the exercise of discretion in the manner of its performance, then it is clear that the court cannot interfere to control that discretion. Whether or not the court has jurisdiction in any case to issue the writ of [409]*409mandamus to the chief executive is a question upon which the decisions of the courts are not harmonious, nor do the text writers agree in their conclusions. In many of the cases which hold that the court is without jurisdiction, the decisions are based upon the conclusion that the duty, the performance of which was sought to be enforced, was a political duty, in the performance of which the executive had the right to exercise discretion. An early leading case on that side of the question and one most often cited by the courts in which the writ has been denied is Hawkins v. The Governor, 1 Ark., 570. Hawkins applied to the Supreme Court of Arkansas for a writ of mandamus against the Governor to require him to issue a commission to Hawkins as Commissioner of Public Buildings, to which office he claimed to have been duly elected by the General Assembly. The Governor refused to issue the commission on the ground, that at the time the election was held there was no law in force authorizing the Legislature to hold an election for that office. The court declined to. take jurisdiction of the case for the reason that the duty imposed upon the executive was a duty imposed by the constitution and was “strictly and exclusively political” and that the executive was therefore invested' with discretion. But the case does not hold that, had the duty been clearly ministerial, the court would have been without jurisdiction to issue the writ or in so doing would have been assuming powers properly belonging to the executive department of the government. Another case much relied upon and often cited is Sutherland v. The Governor, 29 Mich., 320. That case follows the reasoning in the Arkansas case and is based solely on the ground that the duty imposed upon the governor was a political one, where he had the right to exercise discretion. It is said, “Moreover, it is not customary in our republican government to confer upon the governor duties merely ministerial, and in the performance of which he is to be left with no discretion whatever; and the presumption in all cases must be, where a duty is devolved upon the chief executive of the state rather than upon an [410]*410inferior officer, that it is so because his superior judgment, discretion, and sense of responsibility were confided in for more accurate, faithful, and discreet performance than could be relied upon if the duty were devolved on an officer chosen for inferior duties.”

It may not be customary to impose ministerial duties upon the chief executive; but if they are so imposed, how can it be said that the character of the duty has been changed from one that is ministerial to one that is discretionary? The character of the duty must be determined by the nature of the act to be performed and not by the office of the performer.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
84 P. 488, 14 Wyo. 393, 1906 Wyo. LEXIS 19, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-irvine-v-brooks-wyo-1906.