Meredith v. Board of Supervisors

Title to an Office.—If an office is filled, defacto, a writ of mandate does not lie for the purpose of trying the title to it. Fees of an Office.-—The court cannot determine the right to the fees and emoluments of an office, until the right to the office is determined.

Appear from the District Court, Sixth Judicial District, County of Sacramento. The plaintiff was, on the 6th day of September, 1871, elected a member of the Board of Supervisors of the County of Sacramento, and entered on the discharge of his duties, and was, on the 2d day of October, 1871, elected chairman of the board. By the law, as it then stood, the term of a supervisor was four years, and the chairman of the board held office for four years, and the board consisted of three members. By the Political Code, which went into effect January 1, 1873, the members of the board were seven. The newly-elected members took their seats October 2, 1873, and a motion was made to elect a chairman. Meredith refused to put the motion, holding that the office of chairman was already filled until October, 1875. The board, however, proceeded to elect S. B. Moore its chairman, and he took his seat as such, and excluded Meredith from the chairmanship. The compensation which the law allowed the chairman was twenty-five dollars per month. The board afterwards refused to allow Meredith a salary as chairman. He brought this action on the 15th of November, 1873, to compel the board, by writ of mandate, to permit him to fill the office of chairman, and to compel the board to allow him the salary as chairman. An alternative writ was issued. The court held on the trial that “the office of chairman of the board being filled de facto by S. B. Moore at the time this action was commenced, this court cannot in this form of action try or determine the right or title to the office, and the writ of mandate to reinstate the plaintiff Meredith must be and is denied.” The court also held that “the office of chairman of the Board of Supervisors being full, this court cannot determine the right to the fees and emoluments thereof till the right to the office is determined, and the writ of mandate was also denied as to that demand.” The plaintiff appealed.