Longyear v. Toolan

Background

A former owner of a city lot challenged a sale made to satisfy unpaid property taxes. Michigan’s process required a township supervisor to make an assessment roll in May, a board of review to hear objections, taxes to become liens in December, and a statutorily required court petition, published notice, and eventual sale with a one-year right to redeem or set aside the sale. The purchasers received their deed after the sale followed the statute.

Reasoning

The key question was whether substituting published notice for personal service denied the owner the Fourteenth Amendment’s guarantee of fair process. The Court relied on prior decisions and the Michigan scheme’s features — the earlier opportunity to contest the assessment at the board of review, public filing of the petition, publication of notice, and a year-long right to redeem or challenge the sale — to conclude the overall procedure provided an adequate opportunity to be heard. Because the sale complied with the statute and the owner had meaningful chances to contest the tax and the sale, the Court found no violation of due process and affirmed the lower court’s judgment.

Real world impact

Owners whose property has been assessed and listed under this Michigan process are expected to know that published notice and the statutory steps can be enough to support a tax sale. Buyers who acquire land through this authorized tax procedure keep their titles when the required steps are followed. The ruling affirms that the State may enforce tax collection through this statutory framework without using personal service for every property owner.