Trudel v. Emerson

Supreme Court of New Hampshire

Trudel v. Emerson

124 A. 555, 81 N.H. 273, 1924 N.H. LEXIS 23

DecidedApril 1, 1924

StatusPublished

This text of 124 A. 555 (Trudel v. Emerson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of New Hampshire primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Trudel v. Emerson, 124 A. 555, 81 N.H. 273, 1924 N.H. LEXIS 23 (N.H. 1924).

Pincite

Opinion

Parsons, C. J.

“Words purporting to give a joint authority to three or more public officers shall give such authority to a majority of them unless otherwise expressly declared.” P. S., c. 2, s. 15. “A majority of the selectmen shall be competent to act in all cases.” P. S., c. 43, s. 5. The members of the finance commission are public officers; their duties in part are those devolving upon selectmen in towns. Attorney-General v. Bond, ante, 269. They are clearly within the statute and the act of a majority is the act of the board, whether the other member is disqualified or not, or is, or not, notified. Cases cited by Jeremiah Smith, J., Northern Railroad v. Railroad, 50 N. H. 166, 198, 200. Whether the holding that county commissioners when laying out highways are not within the statute because of special provisions for filling vacancies in such boards is sound, or not, is immaterial. There is no provision for filling a vacancy in this commission in case one of the members became disqualified or otherwise unable to act, and the conclusion must be that the legislature intended that when one of the appointees for any reason could not or did not act, the remaining members should possess all the authority of the board.

Exception overruled.

Snow, J., was absent: the others concurred.

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Parsons, C. J.

“Words purporting to give a joint authority to three or more public officers shall give such authority to a majority of them unless otherwise expressly declared.” P. S., c. 2, s. 15. “A majority of the selectmen shall be competent to act in all cases.” P. S., c. 43, s. 5. The members of the finance commission are public officers; their duties in part are those devolving upon selectmen in towns. Attorney-General v. Bond, ante, 269. They are clearly within the statute and the act of a majority is the act of the board, whether the other member is disqualified or not, or is, or not, notified. Cases cited by Jeremiah Smith, J., Northern Railroad v. Railroad, 50 N. H. 166, 198, 200. Whether the holding that county commissioners when laying out highways are not within the statute because of special provisions for filling vacancies in such boards is sound, or not, is immaterial. There is no provision for filling a vacancy in this commission in case one of the members became disqualified or otherwise unable to act, and the conclusion must be that the legislature intended that when one of the appointees for any reason could not or did not act, the remaining members should possess all the authority of the board.

Exception overruled.

Snow, J., was absent: the others concurred.

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Bluebook (online)

124 A. 555, 81 N.H. 273, 1924 N.H. LEXIS 23, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/trudel-v-emerson-nh-1924.