Chicago Cent. & Pac. R.R. Co. v. Bd. of Supervisors

Chicago Central and Pacific Railroad Company (CCP) voluntarily performed repairs on a drainage improvement. When its request for reimbursement for those repairs was denied by the Calhoun County Board of Supervisors, the party responsible for keeping drainage district improvements in repair, CCP filed a petition for an appeal. The district court dismissed CCP's petition and entered judgment in favor of the Board, concluding that the CCP was liable for the costs of repair. The court of appeals affirmed. the Supreme Court vacated the court of appeals and affirmed the district court, albeit on a different basis, holding (1) under the statutory scheme enacted by the legislature, the Board has the duty to keep improvements in repair, but it also has the discretion to decide how to fulfill that duty; and (2) because CCP's suit essentially asked the Court to remove the Board's discretion while leaving its responsibilities intact, the suit was not permitted by law, and the district court properly dismissed the action. View "Chicago Cent. & Pac. R.R. Co. v. Bd. of Supervisors" on Justia Law