Remonstrance against surveyor's final report; modification of assessments

Sec. 31. (a) If a remonstrance is sustained by the court, the court may modify and equalize the assessments, as justice requires, by doing the following: (1) Diminishing the assessments on some tracts and increasing the assessments on other tracts. (2) Giving or withholding damages. (b) For purposes of this section each person whose land is: (1) reported as affected; or (2) stated in the petition as affected; is considered to be in court by virtue of the notices originally given to the parties on the pendency of the petition. (c) If: (1) the land described in the petition as affected by the proposed work; and (2) the surveyor has reported the land as neither benefited nor damaged; the court may, if the facts and justice warrant, make assessments against the land. (d) The assessments as changed, modified, equalized, or made are valid.