The Overseers of the Poor of the Parish of Sunderland-Near-the Sea v The Guardians of the Sunderland Poor-Law Union
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judgment Date | 10 May 1865 |
| Date | 10 May 1865 |
| Court | Court of Common Pleas |
English Reports Citation: 144 E.R. 551
IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS
S. C. 34 L. J. M. C. 121; 13 L. T. 239; 11 Jur. N. S. 688; 13 W. R. 943. Adopted, Bradford-on-Avon Assessment Committee v. White, [1898] 2 Q. B. 634.
11 C. B. (11. 13.) 631, SUNDERLAIYD (OVERSEERS) V. SUNDERLAND UNION 551 Joshua Williams, of Lincoln's Inn ; Edward Francis Smith, of Lincoln's Inn ; George Jesse', of Lincoln's Inn ; Sir Thomas Phillips, Kilt., of the Inner Temple ; Hardinge Stanley Giffard, of the Inner Temple. Benjamin Coulson Robinson, of the Middle Temple, was called to the degree of the Coif. He gave rings with the motto, Ex sese." DM] CASES ARGUED AND DETERMINED IN THE COURT Os' COMMON. PLEAS, IN EASTER TERM, IN THE TWENTY-EIGHTH YEAR OF THE REIGN OF VICTORIA. i9V7' The Judges who usually sat in Banco in the present Term, were,Erle, C. j., Byles, J., and Keating, J. THE OVERSEERS OF THE POOR OF THE PARISH OF SUNDERLAND-NEAR-THE-SEA, Appeltanis ; THE GUARDIANS OF THE SUNDERLAND POOR-LAW UNION, Respondents. May 10th, 1865. [S. C. 34 L. J. M. 0, 121; - 13 L. T. 239 ; 11 Jur. N. S. 688 ; 13W R. 943. Adopted, Bradford-on-Avon AssessmentCommittee v. White, [18981 2 Q. B. 634.1 1. In the parish of S. were certain breweries the occupiers of which were respectively possessed, as owners or lessees, of a number of public-houses known as "tier! houses, some of which were in the parish of S. and some in other parishes. These public-houses were let to tenants at smaller rents than they would have been let at if they had been free public-houses, the tenants being bound by contracts with the landlords (assumed to be contained in the instrument of demise,) to purchase from them all the malt and other liquors consumed in their respective houses,--and so (probably) paying a higher price for their liquors than they would have paid had they been freein valuing these breweries and public-houses for the purpose of making the valuation-list under the Union Assessment Committee Act, 1862, 25 26 Viet. c. 103, s. 14, the overseers applied to them the same principles of valuation as to the other -rateable hereditaments in the parish, pursuant to the Parochial Assess- ment Act, r6 & 7 W. 4, c. 96.-----The union assessment committee (under the Union Assessment Committee Act, 1862), having ascertained that the overseers, in arriving at the gross estimated rental and rateable value of the breweries, had not taken into their consideration the advantages which the occupiers of such breweries derived from the before-mentioned contracts with their tenants, the publicans and having obtained the numbers of such " tied public-houses " attached to each brewery increased the gross estimated rental and the rateable value of such breweries respectively by such an increased sum as the committee in their opinion considered the breweries might reasonably be expected to let for, with the advantages attending the contracts with the "tied public-houses." They, however, made no reduction in the valuation-list in respect of the value of the several " tied public-houses : " field, by Erle, C. J., and Montague Smith, J. (dissentiente Byles, J.), that the union assessment committee had done wrong ill so increasing the .rateable value of Abe breweries, such rateable value not being effected by these personal contracts with the tenants of the tied public-houses. 2. Held also, that the "rateable value "of the public-hogses was not to be decreased by reason of, the hurthen cast upon the tenants by their contracts with the brewer landlords.-3, in making out the valuation-list in a parish which has adopted the Small Tenements Rating Act, 13 14 -Viet. e: 99, the reduction to be made under s. 4 of that act and s. 3 of the 14 15 Viet. c. 39, to the owners of small tenements who are rated instead of the occupiers, should lie made, not from the "rateable value" of the hereditaments assessed, but from the rate in the pound to be levied and collected. In the matter of an appeal by the overseers of the poor of the parish of ;Sunderlandnear-the-Sea, in the county of Durham, to the general (tuarter sessions of [532] the peace for the said county, holden on the 27th of June, 1864, against the valuation-list of the said parish, delivered by the Sunderland Union Assessment Committee tq the said overseers. This was a special case stated, after notice of appeal given, and by the consent of 552 SUNDERLAND (OVERSEERS) V. SUNDERLAND UNION 18 C. B. (N. S,)531 the parties, and by a judge's order under the provisions of the 12 & 13 Viet. . 45, 5. 11, for the opinion of this court. The notice of appeal was as follows : " To the guardians of the Sunderland Union. "Take notice that we, the undersigned, being the overseers of the parish of Sunderland-near-the-Sea, intend, with the consent of a vestry of the said parish, which has 'been summoned for the purpose of giving such consent, to appeal to the next general quarter sessions of the peace to be holden in and for the county of Durham at the city of Durham, against the valuation-list of the said parish of Sunderland, - near-the-Sea: and further take notice that the grounds of such our appeal are as follows, that is to say, " 1, That the rateable hereditaments comprised in the said valuation-list of the said parish of Sunderlaatd-near-the-Sea are valued at sums beyond the rateable value thereof : 2. That certain rateable hereditaments within the said parish in respect whereof the owners thereof are liable to be assessed and are assessed under the Small Tenements Eating Act, 13 & 14 Viet, c. 99, in-E533]-stead of the occupiers thereof, are in the said valuation-list valued at sums beyond the annual rateable value thereof: "3. That, in the said valuation-list, the rateable value of the hereditaments mentioned in the next preceding paragraph is arrived at merely by making deductions from the gross estimated rental thereof for repairs and insurance ; whereas, the rateable value thereof ought further to be reduced by deducting therefrom one fourth, Or, in the ease of hereditaments compounded for by the owners, one half,) of the amount thereof, pursuant to the 4th section of the said Small Tenements Rating Act, 13 & 14 Viet. c. 99. Dated, &c. "GEORGE BARNES, EDwARD EVANS, tOverseers of the said parish of " T. GREENWELL Sunderland-near-the-Sea." " JOHN WALTON, The parish :of Sunderland-near-the-Sea is one of the parishes included its the Sunderland poor-law union, the board of guardians of which union have in accordance with the Union Assessment Committee Act, 1362, 25 & 26 Viet. c. 103, appointed an aessment committee for the purposesof the act, The oveirsee:s of the said parish, in pursuance of the said act, made a list of a4 the dateable Iter3ditaments in the parish in so much of the form shewn in the schedule; of the act 6 & 7; W. 4, e. 96, as set out in the schedule in the act now reciting, which! list was duly deposited for inspection, published, and afterwards transmitted to the committee, as required by the act. This valuation-list, as so transmitted, and as afterwards confirmed and approved by the committee, was to be referred to as forming part of this case, The committee, after receiving the valuation-list, [534] made alterations in the values of certain hereditaments, and then caused the list to be deposited for inspection, as required by the act, and appointed a day for hearing any objections thereto. The overseers of the poor of the parish of Sunderland gave notice of objection, and appeared before the committee and stated their objection to the alterations : but the committee: adhemied to their; original views, and approved and confirmed the list. The overseer, having reason to think that the parish was aggrieved by the decision of the committesi, and having duly obtained the consent of the vestry, gave the notice of appeal hereinhefore set forth. Previous to Ithe quarter sessions the respondents gave notice to respite, which was clone ; and Ultimately an arrangement was entered into, that the questions of law should be settled by a special Case for the opinion of this court. The first ground of appeal is that the rateable hereditaments comprised in the valuation-list are valued at sums beyond the rateable value thereof. This ground of appeal has reference to the valuation of certain breweries in the parish ; and the facts are as follows : In the parish there are five breweries, three of which are occupied by the owners, and the remaining two by lessees. The occupiers of these five breweries are respec- tively possessed of, as owners, or as lessees are entitled to, a great number of public 18 a, IL (141. COM SUNDERLAND (OVERSEERS) V. SUNDERLAND UNION 5 3 houses known as "tied houses," some of which are situate in the parish of Sunderlaudnear-the-Sea, and some in other different parishes. All these public-houses are let to tenants at smaller rents than they would be let at if they were free public-houses ; the tenants being bound to purchase from the brewers all malt and other [535] liquors which they sell in their public houses : the brewers thus securing to themselves: a certain large _trade, and being enabled to charge higher prices for their liquors than they would charge the occupier of a free public-house. In valuing these breweries arid public-houses for the purpose of making the valuation-list, the overseers applied the same principles to the breweries and public-houses as to the other rateable hereditamerits in the parish, pursuant to the Parochial Assess-merit Aet, 6 & 7 W. 4, c_ 96 ; and, in the case of the breweries, without any regard or reference to the advantages derived by the occupiers from the before-mentioned contracts with the occupiers of the several " tied public-houses; " and, in the case of the said " tied public-houses," without any regard or reference to the smaller rents paid by...
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Jessome v. Minister of Municipal Affairs (N.B.), (1969) 1 N.B.R.(2d) 488 (CA)
...be valued as if it were not affected by any such covenant." (Citing Sunderland Overseers v. Sunderland Union (1865), 18 C.B.N.S. 531; 144 E.R. 551; and Robinson Brothers (Brewers), Ltd. v. Durham County Assessment Committee (Area No. 7), [1938] A.C. 321, H.L. at p. 337.) [14] In my opi......