McCarter v. State ex rel. Pitman, Co. Atty.

Summary

The court held that a school-district consolidation satisfied the statutory valuation requirement because the districts' total valuation exceeded the specified amount for the relevant year, even though the State Auditor had not yet certified certain public-service-company valuations when the consolidation order was entered. The court rejected importing a last-preceding-assessment requirement into the consolidation statute and concluded that the trial court improperly directed judgment against the defendants. The judgment was reversed and remanded with instructions consistent with the court's reasoning.