David Nemetz v. Town of Sanbornton

THE STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

SUPREME COURT

In Case No. 2014-0176, David Nemetz v. Town of
Sanbornton, the court on March 13, 2015, issued the following
order:

Having considered the briefs and oral arguments of the parties, the court
concludes that a formal written opinion is unnecessary in this case. The
petitioner, David Nemetz, appeals the Superior Court’s (O’Neill, J.) grant of
summary judgment in favor of the respondent, the Town of Sanbornton, on his
petition to cancel a tax deed, set aside a tax lien, and seek injunctive relief and
damages. The trial court concluded that, as a matter of law, the respondent
satisfied the notice requirements under RSA 80:77 (2012) because the
summary judgment record, construed most favorably to the petitioner,
established that: (1) actual receipt of a letter in January, informing the
petitioner that a tax deed would issue for unpaid taxes, cured the technical
defect of the notice — the statutorily required manner of delivery; (2) a
subsequent “unclaimed” letter was of no consequence; and (3) there had been
no due process violation. On appeal, the petitioner argues that the trial court
erred by not finding that: (1) actual receipt of the January letter sent by first
class mail failed to satisfy the statutory requirement that notice must be sent
by certified mail, return receipt requested; (2) a subsequent “unclaimed” letter
did not provide adequate notice; and (3) due process required the respondent to
take further reasonable steps because both notices were deficient. We affirm.

As the appealing party, the appellant has the burden of demonstrating
reversible error. Gallo v. Traina, 166 N.H. 737, 740 (2014). Based upon our
review of the trial court’s well-reasoned order, the appealing party’s challenges
to it, and the record submitted on appeal, we conclude that the appealing party
has not demonstrated reversible error. See id.

Affirmed.

DALIANIS, C.J., and HICKS, CONBOY, LYNN, and BASSETT, JJ.,
concurred.

Eileen Fox,
Clerk