Page:DuPree v. Alma School District No. 30, 279 Ark. 340 (1983).pdf/11

350 "the trial court committed prejudicial legal error in determining whether the state school financing system at issue before it was violative of our state constitutional provisions guaranteeing equal protection of the laws insofar as it denies equal educational opportunity to the public school students of this state. If we determine that no such error occurred, we must affirm the trial court's judgment, leaving the matter of achieving a constitutional system to the body equipped and designed to perform that function. Serrano at 946." The trial judge was assigned specially to this case. He heard thirty-nine witnesses and reviewed 287 exhibits resulting in over 7400 pages of transcript. His conclusions of fact and law were extensive and detailed, and obvious time and study went into the final decision. We will not overturn the decision below unless we find it clearly erroneous. (ARCP 52). After our own review of the trial court's findings, the arguments presented by both sides and the decisions of other jurisdictions, we conclude that the findings are not clearly erroneous and, accordingly, the decree is affirmed.

Appellees' motion to tax costs against appellants pursuant to Rule 9(e) is denied. We concede the abstract is abbreviated, to say the least, but this is an exceptional case, involving issues and concepts of the broadest possible scope, and we are satisfied appellants have made a good faith effort to give an adequate, if concise, abridgement of the record.

A, C.J., dissents.

H and P, JJ., concur.

D, J., concurs to the extent that the majority opinion finds a violation of Article XIV, § 1 of the Arkansas Constitution.

D H, Justice, concurring. I wholeheartedly agree with the majority. I concur only to add some thoughts that ought to be expressed. This is a case which we could have easily decided the other way with good legal justification. But there are equally good legal reasons for our