§ 277. Civil penalties; how recovered. Any person, firm, company, association or corporation who shall violate any of the provisions of section two hundred and seventy or section two hundred and seventy-two of this chapter shall in addition to the penalties herein provided forfeit to the people of the state a civil penalty of ten dollars for each and every share of stock so sold or transferred, or transferred or entered upon the books of the corporation, as the case may be, without the payment of the tax by this article imposed thereon. Any person who shall violate any of the other provisions of this article shall in addition to the penalties hereinbefore provided forfeit to the people of the state of civil penalty of five hundred dollars for each and every such violation. The state comptroller shall bring an action in his name as such comptroller in any court of competent jurisdiction for the recovery of any civil penalty; and all moneys collected by him. shall be paid into the state treasury. In an action against a corporation or its transfer agent to recover a penalty because of its transfer of stock upon the books or records of the corporation without requiring the payment of the tax by this article imposed. the failure of the corporation or its transfer agent, on the demand of the comptroller or his duly authorized representative, to produce the surrendered certificate or memoranda of sale with the required stamps attached, shall constitute prima facie proof of the nonpayment of the tax imposed by section two hundred and seventy of this chapter. § 278. Effect of failure to pay tax. No transfer of stock made after June first, nineteen hundred and five, on which a tax is imposed by this article, and which tax is not paid at the time of such transfer, shall be made the basis of any action or legal proceedings, nor shall proof thereof be offered or received in evi dence in any court in this state. § 279. Application of taxes. The taxes imposed under this article and the revenues thereof shall be paid by the state comptroller into the state treasury and be applicable to the general fund, and to the payment of all claims and demands which are a lawful charge thereon. *So in original. § 280. Refund of tax erroneously paid. If any stamp or stamps shall have been erroneously affixed to any book, certificate of stock, or bill or memorandum of sale, the comptroller may, upon presentation of a claim for the amount of such stamp or stamps and upon the production of evidence satisfactory to him that such stamp or stamps was or were so erroneously affixed so as to cause loss to the person or persons making such claim, pay such amount, or such part thereof as he may allow, to such claimant out of any moneys appropriated for that purpose. Such claims shall be presented to the comptroller in writing, duly verified, and shall state the full name and address of the claimant, the date of such erroneous affixing, the face value of such stamp or stamps and shall describe the instrument to which the stamp or stamps were affixed and contain such evidence as may be available upon which the demand for such refund is based. Such claims shall be presented within ninety days after such erroneous affixing unless such affixing shall have taken place prior to the date on which this act shall take effect, in which case such claim shall be presented within ninety days after the date on which this act shall take effect. If the comptroller rejects a claim or any part thereof, the claimant may file a claim for the recovery of such sum as the comptroller shall have refused to allow, with the court of claims, which shall constitute a private claim against the state and shall be subject to all the provisions of law governing such claims, except that all claims so presented shall be filed with the court of claims within ninety days from the date on which such claim shall be rejected by the comptroller. For the purposes of this section, the comptroller's decision shall be deemed to have been made at the time of the depositing of a copy of such decision in the postoffice inclosed in a duly post-paid wrapper and directed to the person making such claim at the address contained in the verified claim presented to the comptroller as herein before provided. ARTICLE 13 Procedure Section 290. Contents of petition. 291. Allowance of writ of certiorari. 292. Return to writ. 293. Proceedings upon return. 293a. Special proceedings concerning special franchise tax assessments. 294. Costs. 295. Appeals. 296. Refund of tax paid upon illegal, erroneous or un- 297. When county court may apportion tax. 298. Application to county court where taxpayer has 299. Supplementary proceedings to collect tax. 300. No fine or imprisonment for nonpayment of tax. 302. Cancellation of personal tax where it is void for 303. Power of county court when collector fails to pay over. 304. Payment of moneys collected. 305. Collection of deficiency from collector's bondsmen. sale. § 290. Contents of petition. Any person assessed upon any assessment-roll, claiming to be aggrieved by any assessment for property therein, may present to the supreme court a petition duly verified setting forth that the assessment is illegal, specifying the grounds of the alleged illegality, or if erroneous by reason of overvaluation, stating the extent of such overvaluation or if unequal in that the assessment has been made at a higher proportionate valuation than the assessment of other property on the same roll by the same officers, specifying the instances in which such inequality exists, and the extent thereof, and stating that he is or will be injured thereby. Such petition must show that the application has been made in due time to the proper officers to correct such assessment. Two or more persons assessed upon the same roll who are affected in the same manner by the alleged illegality, error or inequality, may unite in the same petition. § 291. Allowance of writ of certiorari. Such petition must be presented to a justice of the supreme court or at a special term of the supreme court in the judicial district in which the assessment complained of was made, within fifteen days after the completion and filing of the assessment-roll and the first posting or publication of the notice thereof as required by this chapter. Upon the presentation of such petition, the justice or court may allow a writ of certiorari to the officers making the assessment, to review such assessment, and shall prescribe therein the time within which a return thereto must be made and served upon the relator's attorney, which shall not be less than ten days, and may be extended by the court or a justice thereof. Such writ shall be returnable to a special term of the supreme court of the judicial district in which the assessment complained of was made. The allowance of the writ shall not stay the proceedings of the assessors or other persons to whom it is directed or to whom the assessment is delivered, to be acted upon according to law. § 292. Return to writ. The officers making a return to such writ shall not be required to return the original assessment-roll or other original papers acted upon by them, but it shall be sufficient to return certified or sworn copies of such roll or papers, or of such portions thereof as may be called for by such writ. The return must concisely set forth such other facts as may be pertinent and material to show the value of the property assessed on the roll and the grounds for the valuation made by the assessing officers and the return must be verified. If it shall appear § 293. Proceedings upon return. upon the return to any such writ that the assessment complained of is illegal or erroneous or unequal for any of the reasons alleged in the petition, the court may order such assessment, if illegal, to be |