Lukin v. State Board of Equalization

California Court of Appeal Sep 17, 1953 No. Civ. No. 19340Published

Before: Doran

AI Brief

AI-generated · verify before citing

Holding. The court held that the State Board of Equalization correctly interpreted Section 38f of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act to include all off-sale licenses in the population-based quota calculation, thereby precluding the issuance of new licenses when the statutory limit is exceeded. Consequently, the Board had no discretion to grant the license, and no hearing was required.

Issues

Whether the State Board of Equalization correctly interpreted Section 38f of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act to include off-sale beer and wine licenses in the total count of off-sale licenses for quota purposes.
Whether the Board was required to hold a hearing on an application for a liquor license when the statutory limit for such licenses had already been reached.

Disposition. affirmed

Quotations verified verbatim against the opinion

“The term “all” must be construed to mean exactly what it seems to mean, and there is no authority for inserting the additional limiting words which appellants’ theory would require.”

“If appellants’ application for a new license did not fall strictly within the statutory conditions, and if the statutory maximum had already been reached, then obviously a hearing could accomplish nothing.”

“As is well known, the law does not require idle acts.”

DORAN, J. According to appellants’ brief, “Petitioners applied for an off-sale general liquor license and the Board refused to receive, act upon or grant the application. Petitioners thereupon petitioned for an alternative writ of mandamus and for damages, to which petition the board demurred. The demurrer was sustained without leave to amend, from which order (judgment of dismissal) petitioners appeal.”

The board’s refusal to act on appellants’ application, renewed several times, was based, as respondents state, “on its interpretation of section 38f of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act, which interpretation did not allow the issuance of any new off-sale general licenses in Los Angeles County on the basis of a population increase, as the total number of off-sale licenses, including off-sale beer and wine licenses, was in excess of the number allowable for the population of Los Angeles County, (one per 1,000 persons in a county).”

Section 38f reads as follows:

“It is hereby determined that the public welfare and morals require that there be a limitation on the number of premises licensed for the sale of distilled spirits.

“The number of premises for which an on-sale general license is issued shall be limited to one of such premises for each 1,000, or fraction thereof, inhabitants of the county for which the premises are situated, provided that no additional on-sale general licenses, other than a renewal or transfer or as permitted hereinafter in this section, shall be issued in any county where the number of all premises for which on-sale licenses, other than on-sale beer licenses, are issued shall be more than one of such premises for each 1,000, or fraction thereof, inhabitants of such county, and provided further that no on-sale general license shall be issued in lieu of or upon the cancellation or surrender of an on-sale beer and wine license. The number of premises for which an off-sale general license is issued shall be limited to one of such premises [263]for each 1,000, or fraction thereof, inhabitants of the county in which the premises are situated, provided that no additional off-sale general licenses, other than a renewal or transfer or as permitted hereinafter in this section, shall be issued in any county where the number of premises for which all off-sale licenses are issued shall be more than one of such premises for each 1,000, or fraction thereof, inhabitants of such county. Population . . . shall he determined by the most recent United States decennial or special census.” (Italics added.)

Lukin v. State Board of Equalization

AI Brief

More from California Court of Appeal

Related research

AI Brief