New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC v. City of Clyde Hill

¶1 A complaint for declaratory judgment invokes the superior court’s trial jurisdiction, while a petition for certiorari invokes the superior court’s appellate jurisdiction. Either avenue is available as a means of contesting the legality of a municipal fine in superior court, so long as any administrative remedy is first exhausted.

*213¶2 In this appeal, the party contesting the legality of a municipal fine is appellant New Cingular Wireless PCS LLC. For years, New Cingular paid a utility tax to the city of Clyde Hill on wireless data services provided to Clyde Hill residents. New Cingular was…