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ATTORNEY FOR PETITIONER: EVELYN KEATON ATTORNEY AT LAW Indianapolis, IN

ATTORNEY FOR RESPONDENT: MARC PE-CAINE SULTZER OFFICE OF CORPORATION COUNSEL Indianapolis, IN _____________________________________________________________________

CLERK _____________________________________________________________________
of the supreme court, court of appeals and tax court

IN THE INDIANA TAX COURT

FILED

Aug 31 2011, 11:12 am

BRENDA TRUEDELL-BELL,

) ) Petitioner, ) ) v. ) Cause No. 49T10-1107-TA-46 ) MARION COUNTY TREASURER, ) ) Respondent. ) ______________________________________________________________________ ORDER ON PETITIONER'S PETITION FOR INJUNCTIVE RELIEF FOR PUBLICATION August 31, 2011 WENTWORTH, J. Brenda Truedell-Bell has filed a "Petition for Temporary Order/Injunction Removing Property from the Property Tax Sale Pending the Outcome of the Assessment Appeal/Property Reassessment" (Petition). While the Petition asks the Court to consider and resolve several issues, one is dispositive: does the Tax Court have subject matter jurisdiction? FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY On July 23, 2008, Truedell-Bell filed with the Marion County Assessor four petitions challenging the 2007 assessment of property she owned in Marion County.

The petitions alleged that each of the properties was a brownfield and therefore overvalued. The Marion County Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals (PTABOA) has never scheduled a hearing on Truedell-Bell's appeal petitions, and Truedell-Bell did not pay the placeholder tax liability to keep the property out of a tax sale while her appeals were pending.1 As a result, the Marion County Treasurer and Auditor included Truedell-Bell's property in the 2009 tax sale for delinquent taxes, which was scheduled to occur on March 18, 2010. On February 23, 2010, Truedell-Bell filed, pro se, a petition in Marion Circuit Court requesting that her property be removed from the tax sale. On March 8, 2010, Truedell-Bell filed, by counsel, a petition for an injunction seeking to remove her property from the tax sale pending the resolution of her appeals with the PTABOA. On March 10, 2010, the Marion Circuit Court conducted a hearing in the matter; at that time, the Circuit Court denied Truedell-Bell's petition on the basis that it did not have subject matter jurisdiction. Truedell-Bell subsequently appealed to the Indiana Court of Appeals. In a

decision issued on December 9, 2010, the Court of Appeals affirmed the Circuit Court's denial of Truedell-Bell's petition, explaining that exclusive jurisdiction to grant the type of relief she sought rested with the Tax Court. See Truedell-Bell v. Marion Cnty.

Treasurer, 938 N.E.2d 291, 292-94 (Ind. Ct. App. 2010). On July 8, 2011, Truedell-Bell filed her Petition with this Court. The Court

In fact, it appears that when Trudell-Bell filed her assessment challenges with the Marion County Assessor on July 23, 2008, she actually had outstanding (i.e., delinquent) tax liabilities on each of the properties. (See Pet'r App., Vol. 1 at A58-A65.)

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conducted a hearing on the matter on August 22, 2011.2 At that time, Truedell-Bell indicated that on October 7, 2010, her property had been sold in the Marion County tax sale and, as a result, she was now asking the Court to enjoin the issuance of the tax deed on the property pending the PTABOA's determination on her appeal. (Hr'g Tr. at 23.) Additional facts will be supplied as necessary. LAW Subject matter jurisdiction is the power of a court to hear and determine a particular class of cases. K.S. v. State, 849 N.E.2d 538, 540 (Ind. 2006). Subject matter jurisdiction can only be conferred upon a court by the Indiana Constitution or by statute. State v. Sproles, 672 N.E.2d 1353, 1356 (Ind. 1996). The general scope of authority conferred upon the Tax Court is governed by Indiana Code

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