Every officer of the state and of any county, city, town or school district, who shall hereafter order or direct the payment of any money or transfer of any property belonging to the state or to such county, city, town or school district, in settlement of any claim or in pursuance of any unauthorized, unlawful or fraudulent contract or agreement made, for the state or any such county, city, town or school district, by any officer thereof, known to such officer to be fraudulent or void, and every person, having notice of the facts, with whom such unauthorized, unlawful or fraudulent contract shall have been made, or to whom, or for whose benefit such money shall be paid or such transfer of property shall be made, shall be jointly and severally liable to the state, county, city, town or school district affected, for triple the amount of all such sums of money so paid, or triple the value of property so transferred, as a penalty, to be recovered at the suit of the proper officers of the state or such county, city, town or school district, or of any resident taxpayer thereof, pursuant to Section 373 of this title; provided, however, no action for personal liability shall lie against any such officer for a transaction approved in good-faith reliance on advice of legal counsel for the public entity authorizing the transaction or which has been submitted to a court of competent jurisdiction for determination of legality.
R.L.1910, § 6777. Amended by Laws 1955, p. 346, § 1, emerg. eff. May 23, 1955; Laws 1982, c. 86, § 1, emerg. eff. April 1, 1982; Laws 1991, c. 124, § 23, eff. July 1, 1991; Laws 2008, c. 367, § 8, eff. Nov. 1, 2008; Laws 2011, c. 73, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2011.