STATE OF FLORIDA EX REL. CASPER HOWARTH, RELATOR,
v.
SAML. D. JORDAN, AS CLERK OF THE CIRCUIT COURT OF VOLUSIA COUNTY, FLORIDA, RESPONDENT
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The Florida Supreme Court denied a mandamus petition seeking to compel the Volusia County Clerk to accept an $18.00 filing fee for county commissioner candidacy. The relator challenged a special county law that set commissioner salaries at $1,800 annually (triggering a $54.00 filing fee under the general law formula) as violating the Florida Constitution's prohibition on special laws fixing officer salaries.
The Court denied the mandamus petition, holding that the clerk has no authority to hold the special law inoperative or invalid and that the relator failed to establish sufficient interest to contest the constitutionality of Chapter 14680.
“Mandamus may not be invoked to require an officer to perform a certain act, unless it appears that it is clearly the duty of the officer to perform such act.”
Establishes the fundamental requirement for mandamus relief and applies it to deny the petition
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe Clerk of the Circuit Court of Volusia County demanded a $54.00 filing fee from the relator to qualify as a candidate for County Commissioner. This…
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This ease is before us on petition for writ of mandamus wherein it is sought by the Relator to compel the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Volusia County to accept filing fee of $18.00 to qualify the Relator as a candidate for the office of County Commissioner of Volusia County.
The petition shows that the Clerk of the Circuit Court is demanding of the Relator the sum of $54.00 as a filing fee to qualify for such office and that the Clerk of the Circuit Court is acting under the provisions of Chapter 14680, Laws of Fla., Acts of 1931, which fixes the salary of the county commissioners of Volusia County at $1800.00 per annum.
The Relator contends that the chapter above referred to is a Special Law fixing the salary of officers and that the same is in violation of section 20 of Article III of the Constitution of Florida because the General Law of *323Florida fixes the saláries of county commissioners at $600.00 per annum.
Mandamus may not be invoked to require an officer to perform a certain act, unless it appears that it is clearly the duty of the officer to perform such act.
Chapter 14680, supra, purports to fix the salaries of the members of the Board of County Commissioners of Volusia County and the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Volusia County is without authority to hold the Act inoperative or invalid. See State ex rel. A. C. L. R. R. Co. vs. The Board of Equalizers of Fla., 84 Fla. 592, 94 Sou. 681.
The petition of the Relator fails to show that he has such an interest in the subject matter of chapter 14680, supra, as to place him in the status of one having the right to contest the constitutionality of that Act.
For the reasons stated, the petition for mandamus should be denied and it is so ordered.
Whitfield, Ellis, Terrell and Davis, J.J., concur.
Brown, J., not participating.
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Mut. Benefit Health & Accident Ass'n v. Bunting, 133 Fla. 646 (Fla. 1938)…Circuit Courts in cases appealed from the civil courts of record to the Circuit Courts. See State, ex rel., v. The A. C. & S. Co., 84 Fla. 123, 92 So. 871; State v. Atkinson, 102 Fla. 1028, 137 So. 266; State, ex rel., v. Barrs, Judge, 105 Fla. 27, 140 So. 908; State, ex rel., v. Circuit Court, 110 Fla. 46, 148 So. 522; State, ex rel., v. Gray, Circuit Judge, 116 Fla. 510, 156 So. 493; State, ex rel., v. Dickinson, Clerk, 103 Fla. 907, 138 So. 376; Am. Ry. Co. v. Weatherford, 84 Fla. 264, [*654] 93 So. 74…
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Gaulden v. Kirk, 47 So. 2d 567 (Fla. 1950)…nively Groves v. Mayo, 135 Fla. 300, 184 So. 839; Williams v. City of Jacksonville, 118 Fla. 671, 160 So. 15, 98 A.L.R. 513; Coen v. Lee, 116 Fla. 215, 156 So. 747; City of Sebring v. Wolf, 105 Fla. 516, 141 So. 736; State ex rel. Howarth v. Jordan, 105 Fla. 322, 140 So. 908; Gray v. Central Florida Lumber Co., 104 Fla. 446, 140 So. 320, 141 So. 604; State ex rel. Gillespie v. Thursby, 104 Fla. 103, 139 So. 372, 140 So. 775; State v. Goodgame, 91 Fla. 871, 108 So. 836, 47 A.L.R. 118; State ex *572 rel. Clar…
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Fay W. Cates & Fid. & Deposit Co. of Md. v. Heffernan, 154 Fla. 422 (Fla. 1944)…involving not more than $5000.00. The effect of the language of the act was to create at that time, A. D. 1925, a'court of that kind in Dade County, but to leave undisturbed the civil court of record of Duval County. See State v. Barrs, 105 Fla. 27, 140 So. 908. Chapter 11,357 was incorporated in the Comp. Gen. Laws of 1927, as Sections 5156-5168. Chapter 8521, Acts of 1921, had already created a somewhat different kind of civil court of record in counties haying more than 100,000 population according to t…1 / 2
Previewing 3 of 20 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- State v. The Bd. of Equalizers of the State of Fla., 84 Fla. 592 (Fla. 1922)