Brad Lightner v. Hampton Hall Club, Inc…

Summary

The South Carolina Supreme Court held that the Revenue Procedures Act is not limited to property‑tax disputes with the Department of Revenue, that a taxpayer must exhaust the Act’s administrative remedies before suing, and that the Act’s plain‑language prohibition bars class‑action suits for tax refunds. It affirmed the lower court’s dismissal of the class‑action claims, reversed the dismissal of the individual claims, and remanded for dismissal without prejudice. Justice FEW, in a concurring opinion, agreed with the result but criticized the majority’s use of statutory‑interpretation rules after finding the statute’s language plain.