Any person interested under a deed, will, written contract or other writings constituting a contract, or whose rights, status or other legal relations are affected by a statute, municipal ordinance, contract or franchise, may have determined any question of construction or validity arising under the instrument, statute, ordinance, contract or franchise and obtain a declaration of rights, status or other legal relations thereunder.
History: 1953 Comp., § 22-6-7, enacted by Laws 1975, ch. 340, § 4.
ANNOTATIONSAction to declare rights under the Property Tax Code. — A claim seeking to invalidate a tax sale due to inadequacy of price may be directed solely at the third-party purchasers of the property. Valenzuela v. Snyder, 2014-NMCA-061, cert. granted, 2014-NMCERT-005.
Where plaintiffs owed delinquent property taxes; the department sold the property at auction; the department established the minimum bid as $215; the fair market value of the property was at least $25,000; the buyers of the property, who were the only bidders, paid $215 for the property; the department issued a tax deed to the buyers; and plaintiffs filed suit against the buyers to set aside the sale, the suit against the buyers was permissible. Valenzuela v. Snyder, 2014-NMCA-061, cert. granted, 2014-NMCERT-005.
Challenges to administrative entity's authority to act. — A declaratory judgment action challenging an administrative entity's authority to act ordinarily should be limited to purely legal issues that do not require fact-finding by the administrative entity. Smith v. City of Santa Fe, 2007-NMCA-055, 142 N.M. 786, 171 P.3d 300.
Action alleging proposed expenditure unconstitutional not premature. — Because the bond issue money has not been raised, nor spent, does not make this a premature suit for declaratory judgment, seeking a declaration that proposed expenditure of money was unconstitutional. Gomez v. Board of Educ., 1971-NMCA-148, 83 N.M. 207, 490 P.2d 465 (decided under former law).
Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 22A Am. Jur. 2d Declaratory Judgments §§ 68 to 86.
Determination of constitutionality of statute or ordinance, or proposed statute or ordinance, as proper subject of judicial decision under Declaratory Judgment Act, 114 A.L.R. 1361.
Application of Declaratory Judgment Act to questions in respect of contracts or alleged contracts, 162 A.L.R. 756.
Interest necessary to maintenance of declaratory determination of validity of statute or ordinance, 174 A.L.R. 549.
"Actual controversy" under declaratory judgment statute in zoning and building restriction cases, 174 A.L.R. 853.
Tax questions as proper subject of action for declaratory judgment, 11 A.L.R.2d 359.
Validity, construction and application of criminal statutes or ordinances as proper subject for declaratory judgment, 10 A.L.R.3d 727.
26 C.J.S. Declaratory Judgments §§ 44 to 52.