75.62 Procedure in actions related to tax certificates.

(1) Conditional payment. Whenever any action or special proceeding is hereafter commenced to set aside any inclusion of lands in a tax certificate for the nonpayment of taxes, or to cancel any tax certificate, or to restrain the issuing of any tax certificate or tax deed, or to set aside any tax, for any error or defect going to the validity of the assessment and affecting the groundwork of such tax, within 20 days after the commencement of such action the plaintiff in such action or special proceeding shall pay or cause to be paid to the county, town, city, or village officer entitled to receive the same, the amount of taxes, interest and charges levied against the said lands involved in such action, as a condition of maintaining said action.

(2) Reassessment; proceeding. If in said action or proceeding a reassessment is ordered, the court shall, upon the completion of said reassessment made in the manner required by statute, determine the amount which, according to said reassessment, the plaintiff ought justly to have paid upon the lands involved in said action or special proceeding.

(3) Judgment. The plaintiff in such action or special proceeding shall be entitled to recover judgment for the amount, if any, the plaintiff so paid in excess of the amount the court shall finally determine the plaintiff ought to have paid on the lands involved in said action or proceeding, with interest from the date of such payment.

(4) Payment of judgment. Payment of any judgment so recovered by the plaintiff, shall be made forthwith by the treasurer of any such county, town, city or village, upon presentation of a certified copy thereof, without other or further order. The treasurer shall preserve said copy of said judgment as the treasurer's warrant for such payment and shall require the satisfaction of record of said judgment upon the making of such payment. The amount of any judgment so paid by the county treasurer shall be charged to the proper town, city or village and may be included by the county as a special charge against such town, city or village if such judgment shall be the result of an error or defect caused by said town, city or village or official thereof.

History: 1987 a. 378; 1989 a. 56; 1991 a. 316.