Any individual taxpayer/property owner and/or the Village League ("Complainant") may bring a complaint regarding the eligibility of a Parcel for a Refund, the identity of an Original Owner or Successor, the failure to verify a Claim, the denial of a Claim, the calculation of a Refund, or any other action of the Treasurer and/or Assessor (a "Dispute") to the attention of the Treasurer and/or Assessor in writing. The writing shall set forth the basis of the dispute and be signed and dated by Complainant ("Dispute Notice"). The Complainant and the Treasurer and/or Assessor shall confer and use their best efforts to resolve the Dispute amicably and in a reasonably prompt time
If the Dispute has not been resolved within thirty (30) days of the date of the Dispute Notice, the Complainant may submit the Dispute to non-binding mediation before a mutually selected and qualified mediator. The Complainant and the Treasurer and/or Assessor shall share equally in the costs and fees of mediation.
If Complainant chooses not to mediate the Dispute or if mediation is unsuccessful, the Complainant may file a motion in the Equalization Action. The motion will be determined on written briefs without a hearing and the District Court's determination shall be final and binding and not subject to appeal or review by extraordinary writ.
The Complainant as prevailing party before the District Court shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney's fees and costs incurred in relation to the motion. Because the salaries of County attorneys and court costs are already paid by taxpayers generally, the Assessor and/or Treasurer as prevailing parties shall be entitle to the recovery of reasonable attorney's fees and costs only upon a finding by the Court that the Complainant brought the motion in bad faith.
