STATE DEPT. OF FIN. AND ADMIN. v. Staton

ROBERT H. Dudley, Justice.

In January 1994, Debora Staton purchased a car and an extended service contract on the car and paid State sales tax on the sale of both the car and the service contract. The State sales tax attributable to the service contract was $49.28. On April 21, 1994, Ms. Staton filed a claim with the Department of Finance and Administration for refund of the $49.28 on the ground that, under the language of the sales-tax statute, the tax did not apply to the extended service contract. The Department denied the refund.

On July 7, 1994, Ms. Staton filed suit in chancery court and…