Justia Ohio Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

The T. Ryan Legg Irrevocable Trust appealed a tax on the trust’s 2006 income. The tax commissioner moved to dismiss, arguing that the Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) lacked jurisdiction to hear the appeal because the trust had not shown that the trustee had authorized the filing of the notice of appeal and the petition for reassessment. The BTA denied the motion to dismiss. The Supreme Court affirmed in part and vacated the BTA’s decision in part, holding (1) the tax commissioner failed to prove that the trust’s counsel lacked authority to file the tax appeals; (2) the trust’s capital gain was subject to Ohio income tax on an apportioned basis, but the trust had a legal basis for seeking a reduced Ohio allocation; and (3) the tax assessment did not violate due process or equal protection rights. Remanded to the tax commission for a determination of the proper Ohio allocation. View "T. Ryan Legg Irrevocable Trust v. Testa" on Justia Law

Ernest and Louann Giddens resided in Missouri but paid Ohio income tax as owners of shares in a corporation that did some of its business in Ohio. In 2008, that corporation was an S corporation, and therefore, its income passed through for tax purposes. The tax commissioner reduced the amount of the “nonresident tax credit” that relates to a distribution from the corporation. The Giddenses had allocated the distribution outside Ohio, arguing that it constituted a dividend that was “nonbusiness income” allocable to Missouri. The tax commissioner determined that the distribution should be treated as “business income” and concluded that a portion of it was taxable by Ohio based on the proportion of the corporation’s business in Ohio. The Board of Tax Appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the Giddenses properly treated the income as nonbusiness - rather than business - income. View "Giddens v. Testa" on Justia Law

Property owners challenged the Lorain County auditor’s valuation of their single-family residence for tax year 2012, alleging that their 2011 purchase of the property was a recent arm’s-length sale that established a lower true value. The Lorain County Board of Revision (BOR) retained the auditor’s valuation, concluding that there was insufficient evidence to support the property owners’ complaint. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) reversed and valued the property according to the sale price, concluding that the transaction was recent, arm’s-length, and constituted the best indication of the property’s value. The Supreme Court reversed the decision of the BTA and reinstated the BOR’s valuation, holding that the BTA’s decision was unreasonable and unlawful because it mischaracterized and disregarded evidence showing that the sale was a forced sale. View "Utt v. Lorain County Board of Revision" on Justia Law

At issue in this real property valuation case was the proper valuation for tax year 2012 of an unused office warehouse property. The county auditor assigned a value of $1,388,700 to the property. The property owner (Appellant) sought a sale price valuation of $50,000 and an appraisal valuation of either $450,000 or $588,000. The board of revision (BOR) rejected the sale price on the grounds had not been consummated. The transfer allegedly occurred after the hearing held by the Board of Tax Appeals (BTA). The BTA rejected the sale price because the evidence of transfer was presented after the close of its hearing. The BTA then valued the property at $588,000. The Supreme Court vacated the BTA’s decision, holding that the BTA erred by (1) declining to consider Appellant’s post hearing evidence of the consummation of the sale for a price of $50,000; and (2) concluding that the BTA’s initial decision was based on a clerical error that could be corrected without weighing the conflicting evidence of the value of the property. Remanded for further proceedings. View "Emerson Network Power Energy Systems, North America, Inc. v. Lorain County Board of Revision" on Justia Law

At issue in this real property valuation case was the proper valuation for tax year 2009 of sixteen unsold units of a twenty-unit condominium development. The auditor assigned a value of $5,986,400 to the units. Before the Franklin County Board of Revision (BOR), the property owner presented an appraiser’s valuation of $2,900,000. The BOR adopted the appraisal valuation. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) reversed the decision of the BOR and reinstated the auditor’s valuation. The Supreme Court vacated the BTA’s decision, holding (1) the BTA reasonably rejected the appraiser’s opinion of value; but (2) the BTA should have performed an independent valuation of the property. Remanded with instructions that the BTA perform and independent valuation of the property. View "Columbus City Schools Board of Education v. Franklin County Board of Revision" on Justia Law

The Kenney Company, LLC, contested the auditor’s valuation of fourteen office condominium parcels for tax year 2009. The auditor valued the units at approximately $2,512,000. Before the Delaware County Board of Revision (BOR), The Kenney Company presented an appraisal that assigned an aggregate value of $1,430,000 to the unites. The BOR adopted the appraisal valuation. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) reversed the BOR’s decision and reinstated the auditor’s valuation. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the BTA acted reasonably by rejecting The Kenney Company’s appraisal and reinstating the auditor’s valuation. View "Olentangy Local Schools Board of Education v. Delaware County Board of Revision" on Justia Law

Appellant injured her knee while working, and a worker’s compensation claim was allowed for a medial meniscus tear of her right knee. When arthroscopic surgery was later performed on Appellant’s knee and no evidence of a meniscus tear was found, the Industrial Commission exercised its continuing jurisdiction and disallowed Appellant’s claim. Appellant filed a petition alleging that she was entitled to participate in the workers’ compensation system for her workplace injuries and also filed a complaint for a writ of mandamus alleging that the Commissioner’s denial of her claim was an abuse of discretion. The court of appeals denied the writ of mandamus. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Appellant had an adequate remedy by way of appeal, and therefore, the court of appeals lacked jurisdiction to issue a writ of mandamus. View "State ex rel. Carroll v. Galion Assisted Living, Ltd." on Justia Law

Betty Lunn, the owner of a single-family residence, challenged the Lorain County auditor’s valuation of the property for tax year 2012. Lunn appealed, arguing that her 2011 purchase of the home was a recent arm’s-length sale that established a lower true value. The Board of Revision (BOR) retained the auditor’s valuation, concluding that the auditor had provided insufficient evidence of the sale. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) reversed and valued the property according to the sale price. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) the BTA acted reasonably and lawfully when it found that Lunn satisfied her initial burden to show a recent arm’s-length sale under former Ohio Rev. Code 4713.03; but (2) Lunn’s purchase was a “forced sale” under section 5713.04, and therefore, Lunn failed to overcome the presumption that the sale of the property post-foreclosure was not indicative of the property’s true value. View "Lunn v. Lorain County Board of Revision" on Justia Law

Cynthia Musto owned property that the Lorain County auditor valued at $547,260 for the tax year 2012. Musto filed a complaint requesting a reduction in value to $405,000. The Board of Revision (BOR) retained the county auditor’s valuation of Musto’s property. The Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed the BTA’s decision, holding (1) the BTA did not err by denying Musto’s motion to continue the BTA hearing; (2) the BTA reasonably and lawfully retained the auditor’s valuation because Musto did not present clear evidence negating it; and (3) the BTA did not err by denying Musto’s motion to disqualify counsel for the auditor and the BOR. View "Musto v. Lorain County Board of Revision" on Justia Law

Appellee was injured at work. The Industrial Commission awarded Appellee permanent total disability compensation benefits, concluding that Appellee was unable to perform any sustained remunerative employment due solely to the medical impairment caused by the allowed psychological condition in her workers’ compensation claim. Appellee subsequently applied for permanent partial disability compensation, arguing that she was entitled to this award based on the physical conditions allowed in her claim. The Industrial Commission determined that a claimant is not barred from concurrent compensation for permanent partial disability if it is based on conditions that were not the basis for the prior finding of permanent total disability in the same claim. Appellant, Appellee’s employer, filed a complaint seeking a writ of mandamus to compel the Commission to vacate its order. The court of appeals denied the writ. The Supreme Court reversed and granted Appellant’s request for a writ of mandamus, holding that the Commission has no authority to award an injured worker permanent partial disability compensation when the worker has been previously found to be permanently disabled in the same claim, even when the new finding is based on conditions in the claim that formed no part of the basis for the prior finding of permanent total disability. View "State ex rel. Ohio Presbyterian Retirement Services, Inc. v. Industrial Commission" on Justia Law