Bison Township v. Perkins County

Summary

The Supreme Court of South Dakota held that notice of an appeal from a county commission decision was timely served when mailed within the statutory 20-day period, because service by mail was complete upon mailing. The court also held that failure to file the required appeal bond within the statutory period did not deprive the circuit court of jurisdiction. The dismissal was reversed and the matter remanded for consideration of the townships’ substantive challenges to Perkins County’s property assessments.

Holdings

1. A notice of appeal is a notice governed by SDCL 15-6-5, and service by mail is complete upon mailing. The townships therefore complied with the twenty-day requirement when they mailed the notice of appeal and bond within that period.
2. Failure to file the appeal bond within the statutory period does not deprive the court of jurisdiction when the notice of appeal has been duly served and an undertaking has been executed.
3. The circuit court erred in dismissing the appeals as untimely and the matter must be remanded for determination of the substantive issues on the merits.

Questions Presented

1. Whether service of a statutory notice of appeal by mail was complete upon mailing under SDCL 15-6-5(b), thereby satisfying the twenty-day appeal period in SDCL 7-8-29.
2. Whether failure to file the statutorily required appeal bond within the statutory period deprived the circuit court of jurisdiction.
3. Whether the circuit court erred by dismissing the appeals without reaching the substantive challenges to the County's reassessment actions.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded