New York Court of Appeals

The People Ex Rel. the Union Trust Company, Appellant v. Michael Coleman, Commissioners

June 2, 1891126 N.Y. 433

Summary

The Court reversed the lower courts and vacated the assessment, holding that under the 1857 statute the term “capital stock” means the corporation’s capital and surplus, not the shareholders’ share stock, and that assessors may not use the market value of shares as the taxable valuation when the actual value of capital and surplus is known.