Torrington Tax Collector, LLC v. Riley

Summary

The court held that collateral estoppel barred the municipal tax collector’s second attempt to execute on the defendant’s bank funds because the defendant’s lack of notice and opportunity to challenge the underlying tax debt had been litigated and decided in the earlier action. The court concluded that the Superior Court had subject matter jurisdiction to address the due process issue and that an independently sufficient alternative ground supporting the earlier judgment was also entitled to preclusive effect. The court declined to create a municipal-tax exception to collateral estoppel and affirmed the Appellate Court.