Administrative and Tax Appeals

Start with the statute that authorizes the appeal

An administrative appeal exists only where the law provides one, and each pathway has its own procedure. R.C. 2505.03(A) permits review of the final order of an administrative body "when provided by law." The three most common routes are:

• Political subdivisions. Final orders of local boards and officers (zoning boards, township trustees, municipal commissions) are appealed to the common pleas court under R.C. 2506.01.
• State agency adjudications. Licensing and other adjudication orders of state agencies are appealed under R.C. 119.12, which designates the county for filing.
• Tax. Decisions of the Board of Tax Appeals are appealed under R.C. 5717.04, which sends some appeals to the Supreme Court or the court of appeals and others to the court of appeals only.

Agency-specific statutes can override these defaults, so confirm whether a special provision applies before relying on a general one.

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Deadlines and filing traps

The deadlines are short and the filing requirements are exacting. Under R.C. 119.12(D), unless otherwise provided by law, the notice of appeal must be filed within fifteen days after service of the notice of the agency's order, and it must be filed with both the agency and the court. A Chapter 2506 appeal follows R.C. Chapter 2505: under R.C. 2505.07 the appeal must be perfected within thirty days after entry of the final order, unless otherwise provided by law, and under R.C. 2505.04 an administrative appeal is perfected by filing the notice with the administrative body. A Board of Tax Appeals appeal must be filed within thirty days after the decision is entered on the board's journal, with both the court and the board. R.C. 5717.04. In an appeal from a matter originally brought under R.C. 5717.01, the appellant must also send copies to the county board of revision and the county auditor at the same time; proof of filing with the board must be filed with the court; and unless waived, notice must be served on all appellees by certified mail. Decisions on the board's small claims docket under R.C. 5703.021 cannot be appealed at all. Filing in only one place, or counting from the wrong event, is a common way to lose the appeal before it begins.

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Two tiers of review, two different standards

In a Chapter 2506 appeal, the common pleas court considers the whole record and may find the decision "unconstitutional, illegal, arbitrary, capricious, unreasonable, or unsupported by the preponderance of substantial, reliable, and probative evidence on the whole record." R.C. 2506.04. Its judgment may then be appealed "on questions of law." Id. The Supreme Court of Ohio described the second tier in Henley v. Youngstown Bd. of Zoning Appeals as "more limited in scope": the court of appeals reviews only questions of law and lacks the common pleas court's power to weigh the evidence. 90 Ohio St.3d 142 (2000). Henley also confirms that applying an ordinance to undisputed facts is a question of law the court of appeals may decide. Under R.C. 119.12(N), the common pleas court asks whether the agency order is supported by reliable, probative, and substantial evidence and is in accordance with law; R.C. 119.12(O) limits an agency's own further appeal to specified questions of law.

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Practice pointers

• Identify the authorizing statute first, then calendar its deadline and filing locations.
• File the notice where the statute requires, including with the agency or board when required.
• Build the record at the hearing. The first tier reviews that record; the second tier reviews only law.
• Frame second-tier issues as legal questions. Arguments that the common pleas court weighed the evidence wrongly rarely fit the narrower review. See standards of review and final appealable orders.

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Recent analysis

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Authorities cited

• Henley v. Youngstown Bd. of Zoning Appeals, 90 Ohio St.3d 142 (2000)Common pleas review under R.C. 2506.04 weighs the whole record; court of appeals review is limited to questions of law; applying an ordinance to undisputed facts is a question of law.
• R.C. 2506.01, 2506.04Appeals from political subdivision decisions; common pleas standard; further appeal on questions of law.
• R.C. 119.12(D), (N), (O)Fifteen-day notice filed with agency and court; common pleas standard; agency appeals limited to questions of law.
• R.C. 2505.03(A), 2505.04, 2505.07; R.C. 5717.04Administrative orders reviewable when provided by law; perfection with the administrative body; thirty-day period; Board of Tax Appeals appeals.

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Related topics

• Standards of Review
• Final Appealable Orders and Appellate Jurisdiction
• Supreme Court of Ohio Practice and Extraordinary Writs