Section 73-17-18 - Remedy for injury by a district. - New Mexico Statutes

73-17-18. Remedy for injury by a district.

In case any person or public corporation, within or without any district organized under this act, may be injuriously afected [affected] with respect to property rights in any manner whatsoever by any act performed by any official or agent of such district, or by the execution, maintenance or operation of the official plan, and in case no other method of relief is offered under this act, the remedy shall be as follows:   

A.     the person or public corporation seeking relief shall petition the court before which said district was organized for an appraisal of damages sufficient to compensate for such injuries;   

B.     the court shall thereupon direct the board of appraisers of the district to appraise said damages and injuries, and to make a report to the court on or before the time named in the order of the court;   

C.     upon the filing of such report, the court shall cause notice to be given to the petitioner and to the board of the district, of a hearing on said report. At the time of such hearing, the court shall consider said report of the appraisers, and may ratify said report or amend it as the court may deem equitable, or, may return it to the said appraisers and require them to prepare a new report;   

D.     upon the filing of an order of the court approving said report of the appraisers, with such modifications as it may have made, said order shall constitute a final adjudication of the matter, unless it shall be appealed from in the manner hereinafter provided, within twenty (20) days;   

E.     appeal from said order to a jury may be had as hereinbefore provided in case of condemnation proceedings, by the petitioners, by the board of the district or by any person or public corporation adversely affected by the report of the board of appraisers;   

F.     no damages shall be allowed under this section which would not otherwise be allowed in law; provided, however, that nothing in this section shall be construed to deprive any person or public corporation of the remedy of injunction in the case of prospective irreparable injury.