Appeals Court Issues Ruling in Princeton University Tax Exemption Case

Princeton, NJ -- An appeals court has refused to intervene in a lawsuit four residents have brought against Princeton University, challenging its tax exempt status, the Princeton Packet reports.

The University was seeking permission to appeal November’s ruling that it bears the burden for proving it should be tax exempt, according to the report.

Judge Vito L. Bianco, who ruled last year that Morristown Medical Center was not tax exempt for three years, handed that ruling down in November.

The University has said it shouldn’t bear the burden of proof because it is the defendant in the case, and it is typically the plaintiff who bears that responsibility, according to njbiz.com.

Residents Kenneth Fields, Mary Ellen Merino and Joseph and Kathryn King are challenging the tax-exempt status of some of the University’s buildings that are used for commercial use, such as eateries.

The University is also being accused of acting like a for-profit institution, including holding a licensing agreement for a chemotherapy drug.

After Bianco ruled the medical center was no longer tax exempt, it agreed to pay $15.5 million in taxes to the town over the next decade.