Category: Supreme Court

Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of August 8, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down two opinions today. One is a direct criminal appeal addressing, among other things, an indecent technical difficulty during a witness examination via Zoom. The other is a decidedly less salacious civil case applying the MTCA’s presuit notice requirement.

Williams v. State, 2022-KA-01017-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of first-degree murder, holding that the conviction was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence and that the trial court did not err by denying motions for mistrial after an outburst from the victim’s mother or after an technological error caused an explicit video to be played in the courtroom during a voir dire qualification examination of an expert via Zoom where the trial court took corrective action after each incident.
(9-0)

Note – Zoom proceedings took a massive “L” in this one.

The City of Jackson v. Jones, 2023-IA-00394-SCT (Civil – Personal Injury)
Reversing the denial of the City’s motion for summary judgment in an MTCA claim, holding that the plaintiff did not comply with section 11-46-11(2) by failing to serve the city clerk with presuit notice.
(8-0)

Other Orders

  • In Re: Uniform Chancery Court Rules, 89-R-99006-SCT (dismissing Motion to Amend the Uniform Rules of Chancery Court Practice to Add a New Rule Requiring Attorneys Representing Out-of-State Petitioners in Adoption Proceedings to Certify Compliance With Statutes Enacted to Prevent Commercialization of Adoptions filed by the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services)
  • Brandi’s Hope Community Services, LLC v. Walters, 2022-CT-00188-SCT (denying rehearing)
  • Moore v. State, 2022-CT-00327-SCT (denying cert)
  • Silver Dollar Sales, Inc. v. Battah, 2022-CT-00476-SCVT (denying cert)
  • Harris v. Ratcliff, 2022-CT-00596-SCT (denying cert)
  • Edwards v. State, 2022-CT-00719-SCT (denying extension request and dismissing cert petition as untimely)
  • Clark v. State, 2022-DR-00829-SCT (denying Motion for Leave to Interview Members of the Venire Who Did Not Serve on the Petit Jury)
  • Frazier v. State, 2022-CT-00896-SCT (dismissing cert petition as untimely)
  • EEECHO Inc. v. Mississippi Environmental Quality Permit Board, 2022-CT-01068-SCT (denying cert)
  • Harvey v. State, 2023-CT-00157-SCT (denying cert)
  • Clark v. State,  2024-M-00201-SCT (denying Petition for Permission to Appeal Circuit Court’s Order Denying Petitioner’s Motion for Discovery)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of August 1, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down one opinion today in a direct criminal appeal. There are several noteworthy orders including an order suspending a lawyer from practice and an order adopting the Mississippi Collaborative Law Rules.

Williams v. State, 2023-KA-00153-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming denial of defendant’s motion for new trial after he was convicted of sexual battery, holding that conflicting testimony did not prove that the verdict was against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
(9-0)

Other Orders

  • In Re: Rules for Collaborative Law, 89-R-99044-SCT (En banc order granting the Mississippi Bar’s Petition to Create Rules for Collaborative Law and adopting the Mississippi Collaborative Law Rules) (Note – I suppose these rules will join twenty-three other sets of rules under the MS Rules of Court.)
  • The Mississippi Bar v. Rogers, 2024-BD-00215-SCT (suspending respondent from the practice of law)
  • Smith v. Ford, 2022-CT-00255-SCT (denying cert)
  • Fluker v. State, 2022-CT-00692-SCT (granting cert)
  • Barefield v. Barefield, 2022-CT-00834-SCT (denying cert)
  • Quinn v. State, 2022-CT-00962-SCT (granting cert)
  • Hunter v. State, 2022-CT-01269-SCT (dismissing cert petition as untimely)
  • In Re: Administrative Orders of the Supreme Court of Mississippi, 2024-AD-00001-SCT (directing the disbursement of $176,989.51 in civil legal assistance funds among the MS Center for Legal Services, MS Volunteer Lawyers Project, and North MS Rural Legal Services)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of July 25, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down just one opinion today in a direct criminal appeal. Since I had a 1:30 p.m. hearing today, I welcome the reprieve from volume.

Sheely v. State, 2023-KA-00493-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of possession of more than 0.1 gram but less than 2 grams of meth, holding that the evidence was sufficient to support the verdict and that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying the defendant’s proposed broken chain of custody instruction because the defendant did not overcome the presumption of regularity.
(9-0)

Other Orders

  • Hutto v. State, 2017-DR-01207-SCT (denying motion for leave to file successive petition for PCR)
  • Harper v. State, 2022-CT-00659-SCT (denying cert)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of July 18, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down three opinions today. There are two direct criminal appeals (one of which resulted in reversal) and one convoluted civil case stemming from business dealings related to a mixed-use development.

Jones v. State, 2022-KA-01173-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of murder, holding that the defendant was not denied a fair and impartial trial by the State’s reference to other bad acts in its opening statement and that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
(9-0)

Walker v. State, 2023-KA-00467-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Reversing conviction of knowlingly possessing methamphetamine with a firearm enhancement, holding that the State failed to present sufficient, competent evidence connecting the defendant to the meth to establish constructive possession where there was another passenger in the vehicle the defendant was driving and the meth was found between the driver’s seat and the center console.
(8-1: Randolph dissented)

NOTE – Here is some of the key rationale:

Landrum v. Livingston Holdings, LLC, 2022-CA-00498-SCT (Civil – Other)
Affirming in part and reversing in part on direct and cross-appeal in a dispute arising out of business agreements related to a mixed-use development, holding that the chancellor did not err in finding that one litigant did not have derivative standing on behalf of an LLC; that the chancellor did not err in denying a Rule 52(a) request for findings of fact and conclusions of law; that the chancellor did not err in denying a Rule 54(b) motion for final judgment; that the chancellor erred in finding no fiduciary duty existed between to entities but did not err in such a find as to others; that several issues were waived for failure to cite authority in briefing; that the chancellor did not err in excluding expert testimony; that the chancellor erred in dismissing the breach of contract claim; and that the chancellor erred in denying attorneys’ fees.
(6-3: King concurred in part and dissented in part, joined by Kitchens; Griffis concurred in part and dissented in part, joined by Kitchens and King)

NOTE – The majority opinion is 44 pages that include many convoluted underlying facts that I have not attempted to convey here.

Other Orders

  • In Re: The Mississippi Access to Justice Commission, 89-R-99032-SCT (reappointing Hon. Tiffany Grove, David Haadsma, and Julian Miller as Commissioners of the Access to Justice Commission to terms expiring June 30, 2027, and appointing Michael Carr, Hon. Joseph Kilgore, and Barrett Blake Teller as Commissioners to terms expiring June 30, 2027, to succeed Michelle Clouse, Hon. Trent Favre, and Stephen Johnson.)
  • Ronk v. State, 2021-DR-00269-SCT (denying rehearing)
  • Riordan v. Estate of Haguewood, 2022-CT-00606-SCT (denying cert)
  • Ratcliff v. State, 2022-CT-00690-SCT (granting cert)
  • Scates v. State, 2022-CT-00856 (denying cert)
  • Premier Radiology, P.A. v. Davis, 2022-IA-00916-SCT (denying reconsideration and reinstatement)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of June 27, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down three opinions yesterday. The first opinion is a decision about damages following a voided tax sale. The second is an answer to a certified question from the Fifth Circuit asking whether Mississippi law permits workers’ comp policies to be voided ab initio based on a material misrepresentation. The third opinion reviews summary judgment in a med mal case centering on whether the discovery rule applied.

Thoden v. Hallford, 2022-CA-00835-SCT (Civil – Real Property)
Affirming in part and reversing in part the chancellor’s decisions in a case stemming from a voided tax sale of real property, holding that the chancellor correctly determined that the buyer was entitled to a refund of the purchase price of the voided sale plus interest, that the buyer was not entitled to reimbursement for costs incurred on the property, and that the legal owner was entitled to a set-off, but that the chancellor erred by determining that the purchaser was not entitled to taxes paid between the purchase and the voidance.
(7-0: Randolph and Griffis did not participate)

American Compensation Ins. Co. v. Ruiz, 2023-FC-01160-SCT (Civil – Federally Certified Question)
Answering a certified question from the Fifth Circuit, holding that workers’ compensation policies cannot be voided ab initio based on an material misrepresentation by the employer because the MWCA controls, rescission is inconsistent with Section 71-3-77(1), and allowing rescission would go against the express, statutory purpose of the MWCA.
(7-1: Coleman dissented, Randolph did not participate)

NOTE/DISCLOSURE: I represented one of the parties in this case and argued that the common law remedy of voiding a policy ab initio cannot be used to void a workers’ comp policy because of the comprehensive and exclusive nature of the MWCA. This issue had never been addressed by Mississippi courts, so when the carrier appealed the U.S. District Court’s decision granting our motion for summary judgment, the Fifth Circuit submitted a certified question to the Mississippi Supreme Court. This has been one of my favorite cases to handle with an interesting, novel legal issue at its core. Needless to say, I am gratified that the question was answered in my client’s favor despite great lawyering by opposing counsel.

Here is the crux of the Court’s holding:

McNinch v. Brandon Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, L.L.C., 2023-CA-00050-SCT (Civil – Wrongful Death)
Reversing summary judgment in favor of the defendant nursing home and hospital in a med mal case, holding the discovery rule tolled the statute of limitations where suit was filed within two years and sixty-days of when the decedent’s widow received his medical records which were requested with reasonable diligence.
(9-0)

Other Orders

  • In Re: Commission on Continuing Legal Education, 89-R-99011-SCT (reappointing Elizabeth Lee Maron, Robert Michael Tyler, Jr., and Sam H. Buchanan to three-year terms)
  • Archie v. State, 2022-KA-00326-SCT (denying rehearing)
  • Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services v. B.F., 2023-IA-00689-SCT (dismissing interlocutory appeal as moot)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of June 20, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down three opinions on Thursday. The first is a divorce case that discusses property classification and alimony and partially overrules a prior decision. The second decision is a direct criminal appeal appealing the denial of an indigent defendant’s request for funding for defense experts. The third case involves a motion for protective order that was sought to exempt redacted information from a public records request disclosure.

Cassell v. Cassell, 2023-CA-00213-SCT (Civil – Domestic)

Affirming the chancellor’s rulings in a divorce matter, holding that the chancellor did not err in the classification of property or award of alimony, that the burden of proof to rebut the presumption of marital property is preponderance of the evidence, and that the party claiming property excluded from marital property has been commingled and transformed into marital property bears the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence, and “overrul[ing] Cheatham insofar as it has any bearing on a chancellor’s decision to award alimony and reaffirm the factors enumerated in Ferguson—awarding alimony during the division of the estate—and Armstrong—awarding alimony subsequent to the division of the estate—as the appropriate factors to be considered.”

(9-0)

Harris v. State, NO. 2023-KA-00038-SCT (Criminal – Felony)

Affirming conviction for aggravated DUI, holding that the trial court did not abuse its discretion denying the indigent defendant’s request for funds to retain experts where the requests were insufficient to show a substantial need for state funding or defense experts.

(9-0)

UnitedHealthcare of Mississippi, Inc. v. Amerigroup Mississippi, Inc., 2022-SA-01216-SCT (Civil – Other)

Affirming the chancellor’s decision denying a motion for protective order that sought to exempt redacted information in a qualification United Healthcare had submitted to the Department of Medicaid from disclosure in response to a public records request, holding that United did not meet its burden of showing that the redacted information was either a trade secret or confidential commercial or financial information, and denying United’s request to supplement the record.

(9-0)

Other Orders

Simmons v. State, 2022-CT-01260-SCT (denying cert)

Brown v. State, 2024-M-00013 (granting application for leave to file a motion for post-conviction DNA testing)

Bonner v. The Mississippi Bar, 2024-BD-00142-SCT (granting leave under Mississippi Rule of Discipline 11(b) to resign in good standing from the practice of law in Mississippi)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of June 13, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down four opinions today. Three of the opinions are direct criminal appeals, and one of those involved a reverse Batson challenge. The fourth opinion was a dec/injunction action against MDCPS.

Morris v. State, 2023-KA-00546-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction for statutory rape, holding that the evidence was sufficient to support the conviction and that the verdict was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence.
(9-0)

Turner v. State, 2023-KA-00074-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of kidnapping after the defendant failed to return her daughter to the child’s lawful custodian, holding that there was sufficient evidence to support the conviction.
(9-0)

Smith v. State, 2021-CT-01003-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of first-degree murder having granted cert on the issue of whether the case should be remanded for another Batson hearing, holding that the trial court did not err in disallowing two of the defendant’s strikes after reverse Batson challenges.
(6-3: King dissented, joined by Kitchens and joined in part by Ishee)

Jones v. Miss. Dept. of Child Protective Services, 2022-SA-01234-SCT (Civil – State Boards and Agencies)
Affirming the chancellor’s decisions granting MDCPS a judgment on the pleadings in an injunctive and declaratory action against MDCPS’s policy not to investigate allegations of abuse at school, holding that Mississippi law (Mississippi Code Section 43-21-353 (Rev. 2023), specifically) does not require the MDCPS to investigate a report that a child has been abused at school.
(6-1-2: Randolph concurred in the result only without writing; Kitchens dissented, joined by King)

Other Orders

  • Rules for Court Reporters, 89-R-99021-SCT (appointing Leslie D. King, Candace O’Barr Jones, Kati Vogt, and Latanya Allen as members of the Board of Certified Court Reporters for two-year terms from July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2026)
  • Haverscome v. State, 2022-CT-00391-SCT (denying cert)
  • Brown v. State, 2022-CT-00446-SCT (denying cert)
  • Gilmer v. Biegel, 2022-CP-00528-SCT (one order denying cert; granting motion for fees)
  • Moore v. Miss. Farm Bureau Casualty Ins. Co., 2022-CT-00555-SCT (denying cert)
  • Gregory Meridian Acquisition, LLC v. McFarland, 2022-CT-00580-SCT (denying cert)
  • Wiggins v. Southern Securities Group, LLC, 2024-TS-00251 (accepting request for interlocutory appeal as notice of appeal)
  • Mi Pueblo Mexican Restaurant, LLC v. Breakfast Cove, LLC, 2024-CA-00271 (granting leave to proceed in the trial court with Miss. R. Civ. P. 60 motion but denying stay request)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of June 6, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down just one opinion today, accompanied by six cert denials. The opinion is from an ejectment action case. It was before the Supreme Court on cert after the circuit court was affirmed by a 3-2-5 Court of Appeals. The pro se appellant rode the COA dissent to a cert grant and reversal.

Tubwell v. FV-1, Inc., 2021-CT-01345-SCT (Civil – Real Property)
Affirming in part and reversing in part the circuit court’s ruling (as affirmed by a 3-2-5 Court of Appeals) in an ejectment action, holding that the circuit court erred in finding that it lacked jurisdiction over the defendant’s counterclaims since the initial claim was an ejectment action that was governed by the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure which allow counterclaims.
(8-0: Randolph did not participate)

Other Orders

  • Macvaugh v. State, 2021-CT-01317-SCT (denying cert)
  • Kilcrease v. City of Tupelo, 2022-CT-00194-SCT (denying cert)
  • Walker v. State, 2022-CT-00482-SCT (denying cert)
  • Hutson v. Hutson, 2022-CT-00569-SCT (denying cert)
  • Galvan v. State, 2022-CT-00655-SCT (denying cert)
  • Johnson v. State, 2022-CT-01186-SCT (denying cert)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of May 30, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down five opinions today. There is an MTCA case, a premises liability case, an unpaid wages case against MDOC, an insurance coverage case, and a workers’ comp/third-party case.

Yazoo City, Mississippi v. Hampton, 2022-IA-01284-SCT (Civil – Property Damage)
Reversing denial of summary judgment in a case seeking to hold the City liable for alleged ineffective firefighting and alleged resulting cardiac stress, holding that the City was immune under the MTCA from both property damage and personal injury liability where the evidence did not support a finding of reckless disregard by the fire department.
(9-0)

St. Dominic-Jackson Memorial Hospital v. Martin, 2023-CA-00285-SCT (Civil – Personal Injury)
Reversing judgment on a jury verdict in case stemming from a fall in an emergency room parking lot, holding that the evidence did not require judgment in the defendant’s favor but that the trial court erred by granting a negligence per se instruction and remanded for a new trial.
(9-0)

Mississippi Department of Corrections v. McClure, 2022-IA-01201-SCT (Civil – State Boards and Agencies)
Affirming the circuit court’s denial of a motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction over a former probation officer’s claim for unpaid wages for work with the MDOC, holding that Mississippi courts have jurisdiction to hear state employees’ claims against their employers for breach of contract and that the exhaustion doctrine did not apply because there was not adequate administrative remedy.
(9-0)

VT Halter Marine, Inc. v. Certain Underwriters of Lloyd’s of London Subscribing to Policy Number B0507M17PH04660, 2023-CA-00019-SCT (Civil – Insurance)
Affirming summary judgment in favor of an insurer in a suit by an insured seeking coverage for costs incurred in repairing and replacing flange plates that failed due to faulty workmanship, holding the insurance policy unambiguously excluded the cost of replacing or repairing improper or defective materials.
(9-0)

Brent v. Mississippi Dept. of Human Services, 2022-CT-00529-SCT (Civil – Workers’ Compensation)
Reversing the decision of the Mississippi Court of Appeals that affirmed trial court’s decision allowing the intervening employer/carrier’s EME costs be included in the statutory lien, holding that the EME was not a “reasonable and necessary medical expense” and therefore not properly included in the lien amount.
(9-0)

Other Orders

  • DeJohnette v. State, 2022-CA-00249-SCT (denying cert)
  • Chambliss v. Chambliss, 2023-CT-00087-SCT (denying cert)

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Mississippi Supreme Court Decisions of May 23, 2024

The Mississippi Supreme Court handed down three opinions today. There is one direct criminal appeal, one § 1983 case, and one case about huntin’ dogs.

Pittman v. State, 2023-KA-00367-SCT (Criminal – Felony)
Affirming conviction of burglary of a dwelling, passing on the issue of whether evidence of prior bad acts were improperly admitted and holding that if there was any error it would be harmless.
(9-0)

Clay v. Tunica County, Mississippi, 2022-CA-01106-SCT (Civil – Wrongful Death)
Affirming summary judgment in a § 1983 action on qualified immunity grounds, holding that the plaintiffs failed to establish deliberate indifference and that local governments cannot be held vicariously liable based on employer-employee relationships.
(9-0)

Allen v. Dickerson, 2023-CA-00067-SCT (Civil – Real Property)
Affirming the chancellor’s rulings in a case pitting the right to quite enjoyment of property against the right to hunt and harvest wildlife, holding that the trial court’s finding that repeated intrusion of deer hunting dogs onto neighboring property constituted private nuisance and warranted an injunction.
(5-1*-3: Maxwell specially concurred, joined by Coleman, Beam, Chamberlin and Griffis; Ishee dissented, joined by Randolph and Kitchens)

Practice Point – Maxwell’s special concurrence received four other votes, giving it precedential value. The special concurrence agreed with the majority’s ruling but emphasized that the decision is not a blanket and should not be read to besmirch lawful dog hunting.

Note – The dissent waded into the regulatory morass of what you can hunt when.

My Parting Thought – Mind your dogs.

Other Orders

  • Goldbolt v. State, 2020-DP-00440-SCT (denying rehearing)
  • Durr v. State, 2021-CT-01109-SCT (dismissing cert sua sponte)
  • Gilmer v. State, 2022-CT-00257-SCT (denying cert)
  • Premier Radiology, P.A. v. Davis, 2022-IA-00916-SCT (dismissing interlocutory appeal)

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