L Charles Wright

The case involved a divorce in which the wife was awarded 45% of the husband's military retirement benefits. The husband appealed the award, noting that he had retired after 22 years of service, 14 of which overlapped with the marriage. Alabama Code § 30-2-51 permits a court to include vested retirement benefits in the marital estate but expressly prohibits including the value of benefits acquired before the marriage. The appellate court held that the trial court erred by failing to exclude the pre-marriage portion of the benefits before making the division. The judgment was therefore reversed and the case remanded for further proceedings to apply the statutory exclusion.

family lawproperty

The case involved Addie L. Jackson, a 59-year-old employee terminated from her position as Chief of Imaging at a Jefferson County government hospital for misconduct including poor supervision and neglect of duties. Jackson appealed to the Jefferson County Personnel Board, which upheld her termination despite a hearing officer's recommendation for lesser discipline, and she then filed suit in circuit court alleging age discrimination under the ADEA along with a challenge to the board's decision. A three-judge panel affirmed the termination on the ground that substantial legal evidence supported the board's ruling, and the trial court later granted summary judgment to the defendants on the ADEA claim based on collateral estoppel and res judicata. On review via certiorari, the court affirmed the termination decision because the record showed ample evidence of violations after prior discipline, but reversed the summary judgment on the ADEA claim. It held that the limited scope of review available for personnel board appeals under state law did not bar a separate federal age discrimination action, following controlling precedent.

labor & employmentcivil rightsprocedure

The case involved the Hale group, nearby landowners, seeking to intervene in a prior lawsuit (Ray v. Osborn Coal Enterprises, Inc.) and set aside a 1993 judgment that approved a settlement agreement between the Town of Brookside and Osborn Coal. The settlement resolved challenges to the town's annexation and zoning of Osborn's property for strip mining, with the agreement including payments from Osborn to the town and further annexations in exchange for favorable zoning. The trial court denied the motion to intervene and vacate the judgment under Rule 60(b). On appeal, the court reversed, holding that the settlement constituted illegal contract zoning because the town bargained away its legislative authority over zoning, making the judgment void; the Hale group had a sufficient interest as affected property owners; and their post-judgment motion was timely given the lack of prior notice of the agreement's terms.

propertyprocedurebusiness & regulatory

Christopher Luckie sued the City of Montgomery and Corporal D.P. Griffin for malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, assault and battery, and outrage after his arrest and re-arrest on a DUI charge stemming from a minor traffic collision where field sobriety tests and breathalyzer results conflicted with the officer's observations. The trial court granted summary judgment to the defendants. On appeal, the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals affirmed the judgment for the City on the malicious prosecution and outrage claims but reversed it on the false arrest, false imprisonment, and assault and battery claims against both the City and Griffin. The court reasoned that Alabama municipal immunity statutes shield the City from intentional tort claims like malicious prosecution but not from false arrest claims, and that genuine issues of material fact existed as to probable cause because the officer's deposition contradicted his affidavit regarding Luckie's condition and the breath tests showed a .01 blood alcohol level.

criminal lawtorts & liabilityprocedure

James Casey and Stephen Murphree sued Marshall and Dana Clarke and two banks to quiet title to a 19-foot-wide strip of land bordering Interstate 65, also asserting trespass and an implied easement while seeking deed reformation; the Clarkes counterclaimed for trespass. The trial court found that the Clarkes owned the strip by adverse possession and revised the plaintiffs' deed. On appeal, the court held that the Clarkes failed to prove exclusive possession for the required ten-year period because the plaintiffs continued using the strip until the Clarkes erected a fence in 1996, which was less than ten years before the suit. The plaintiffs' deed included the disputed strip and they paid taxes on it, while the Clarkes' deed did not, so the plaintiffs held superior title. The appellate court reversed the judgment and remanded for entry of judgment quieting title in the plaintiffs.

propertyprocedure

Benny M. Green sued his employer, Scott Sanders, seeking workers' compensation benefits after a tree fell on him during work in 1994, fracturing vertebrae and a disc and allegedly causing permanent total disability. The trial court awarded benefits, calculated based on Green's average weekly earnings of $300, and taxed costs of about $11,500 against the employer for experts and depositions. The employer appealed, arguing errors in the costs award, wage proof under § 25-5-57(b), expert opinion predicates, and the disability finding. The appellate court affirmed, concluding that substantial evidence supported the trial court's factual findings, the court acted within its discretion on costs under §§ 25-5-89 and 12-21-144, and no reversible errors occurred in the evidence or vocational analysis.

labor & employmentprocedure

Charles Cagle sued his employer, Brock and Blevins, Inc., seeking workers' compensation benefits after injuring his back, hips, knees, and groin by tipping a 300-pound torch buggy on his first day of work in 1993. The trial court found that Cagle had a pre-existing genetic condition (spondyloarthritis) that was not aggravated by the accident, that he had refused recommended hernia surgery, and that he was therefore ineligible for permanent or temporary disability benefits, though the employer remained liable for medical and vocational rehabilitation costs. On appeal, the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals reversed, holding that the trial court's finding of a non-aggravated pre-existing condition was not supported by substantial evidence because Cagle had performed manual labor before the injury, had worked for several hours on the job before the accident, and medical testimony indicated that the fall could have exacerbated his latent condition. The case was remanded for a determination of any disability benefits. The opinion concerns the interpretation of Alabama's Workers' Compensation Act regarding pre-existing conditions.

labor & employment

This case involves a dispute between divorced parents J.B.F. (mother) and J.M.F. (father) over custody of their daughter and restrictions on the mother's visitation. On remand from the Alabama Supreme Court, the Court of Civil Appeals was directed to affirm the trial court's decision to change custody from the mother to the father. The court also addressed the trial court's restriction preventing the mother from exercising visitation in the presence of her companion, interpreting the supreme court's ruling as barring the child from being alone with the mother and companion under any circumstances. Although the appellate court noted disagreement with the supreme court's custody ruling, it was bound by that decision under state law and therefore affirmed the trial court's judgment in full on both custody and visitation.

family law

Stephanie Rutledge sued Arrow Aluminum Industries, Inc. and Foshee Builders, Inc. after an intruder entered her locked apartment through a sliding glass door without breaking it and raped her at approximately 5 a.m., alleging claims of negligence/wantonness, breach of warranty, and violation of the Alabama Extended Manufacturer's Liability Doctrine based on the door's design and lack of warnings. The trial court granted summary judgment to the defendants, relying on the general rule that there is no duty to protect against third-party criminal acts absent special circumstances. The appellate court affirmed summary judgment for Foshee Builders because it was not a seller of the door under AEMLD or warranty law but reversed as to Arrow Aluminum, holding that the plaintiff presented sufficient evidence that she would have read and heeded a warning about the locking mechanism if one had been provided.

torts & liabilityprocedure

In Lowery v. Densmore, William Keith Lowery sued Sherry L. Densmore in 1997 for negligence, wantonness, and trespass after her intoxicated driving caused her vehicle to collide with and damage two of his automobiles in February 1995. The trial court granted Densmore's motion for summary judgment, ruling that the claims were barred by the applicable statutes of limitations, and Lowery appealed only the dismissal of the trespass claim. The appellate court affirmed the summary judgment on the negligence and wantonness claims but reversed it on trespass, holding that the injury resulted from a direct application of force qualifying as trespass subject to a six-year limitations period under Alabama Code § 6-2-34 rather than the two-year period for trespass on the case under § 6-2-38.

torts & liabilityprocedure

This case involved Barry Borum suing Alabama Inter-Forest Corporation and its CEO Jack Winkleblack for fraudulent misrepresentation, fraud in the inducement, and breach of an implied contract after Winkleblack allegedly promised him a job but later withdrew the offer, causing Borum financial losses from relocating. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants. On appeal, the court affirmed the summary judgment on the breach of contract claim, reasoning that at-will employment does not support a contract claim, but reversed on the fraud claims because Borum presented substantial evidence that Winkleblack made false representations about employment without intending to hire him. The case was remanded for further proceedings on the fraud claims.

labor & employmenttorts & liability

In Roberts v. Baldwin County Commission, plaintiff Marilyn Roberts sued the county commission and a commissioner after the county graded and widened a dirt road on a non-exclusive private easement across her property, claiming a taking under the Alabama Constitution, trespass, and nuisance. The trial court granted the defendants' motion for judgment on the pleadings, but the appellate court reversed, holding that Roberts, as the servient estate owner, retained rights to use the easement in common with its beneficiaries and thus had standing to bring her claims. The court further held that the commissioner was not entitled to legislative immunity because decisions about road maintenance were executive or administrative actions rather than legislative ones. The case was remanded for further proceedings.

propertyproceduretorts & liability

In Concerned Citizens v. City of Fairfield, an association of citizens sued the city, its mayor, and council seeking a declaration that the city's monthly garbage collection fees constituted an illegal tax and an injunction against their collection or deposit into the general fund, along with other challenges to the city's authority under state solid waste laws. The trial court denied a preliminary injunction, noted the city's redirection of fees to a separate account, and assessed costs against the plaintiffs. On appeal, the court affirmed, concluding that the plaintiffs waived three issues by failing to cite supporting authority and that the city possessed statutory authority under the Solid Wastes Disposal Act and related provisions to collect reasonable fees for garbage services using licensed external landfills without operating its own facility.

environmenttaxesbusiness & regulatory

In 1993, Jefferson County condemned approximately one acre of the Flanagans' land through probate court proceedings that awarded them $2,100, after which the Flanagans appealed the award to circuit court and separately sued the county for tort claims including trespass, conversion, negligence, and private nuisance arising from the county's actions on the property. The tort claims were consolidated with the condemnation appeal and tried to a jury, which awarded the Flanagans $45,000 on the tort claims. On appeal, the Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama affirmed the tort judgment, holding that the pending condemnation appeal did not bar the tort claims under principles of res judicata, that the awards did not constitute double recovery because the jury was instructed not to award diminution in property value, and that the evidence supported the damages awarded for the county's pre-condemnation conduct.

propertytorts & liabilityprocedure

This case involved a tenured teacher, Gracie Stills, whose employment contract was canceled by the Phenix City Board of Education after she was accused of striking a student. The Board mailed notice of the proposed cancellation and a hearing on the last day of the school term, but Stills did not receive it until after the term ended, and she challenged the timeliness under Alabama Code § 16-24-12. The Tenure Commission upheld the cancellation, and the trial court denied her petition for mandamus. The Court of Civil Appeals reversed, holding that the statute requires actual receipt of written notice on or before the last day of the term, relying on precedent that mailing alone does not satisfy the provision when the statute is silent on the method of delivery. The court found the Board's failure to provide timely notice made the Tenure Commission's decision unjust.

labor & employmentprocedure

This case involves a divorce action filed by the husband in Baldwin County Circuit Court after the parties married in 1986 and he adopted the wife's three children from a prior marriage. The trial court awarded the wife custody of the minor child, divided the marital property including real estate and business assets, ordered the husband to pay monthly child support, and treated certain property awarded to the wife as an advance payment of two years of child support. On appeal, the Court of Civil Appeals reversed and remanded, holding that the trial court erred by awarding property as prepayment of child support because such awards must remain modifiable based on changed circumstances, failed to apply the mandatory Rule 32 child support guidelines or file the required CS-42 form, and did not clearly separate the property division from child support considerations. The court directed the trial court on remand to revise the property division according to marital interests alone and to calculate periodic child support under the guidelines.

family lawpropertyprocedure

This case involved a 1995 paternity and child support action filed by the State of Alabama on behalf of a child born in 1980 against T.H.P., after blood tests had excluded the mother's ex-husband (who was married to the mother at the time of the birth) as the biological father. The trial court granted summary judgment to T.H.P., and the Court of Civil Appeals affirmed, holding that the action was barred by the five-year statute of limitations in § 26-17-6(a). The court reasoned that the child retained a presumption of paternity as to the ex-husband because the child was not a party to the 1985 divorce proceeding and thus was not bound by its determination that the ex-husband was not the father; no timely action had been brought to rebut that presumption before the child's fifth birthday. The court further held that T.H.P. could properly raise the presumption and limitations period as an affirmative defense.

family lawprocedure

This case involves a workers' compensation claim by Betty Easterly against her employer, Beaulieu of America, Inc., for a back injury sustained in a workplace accident on June 24, 1991, which was complicated by the development of discitis. After an initial appeal, the trial court on remand awarded benefits based on a finding of 15% permanent partial disability to the body as a whole, citing inconsistencies in Easterly's testimony, medical records, and its own observations of her pain level. Easterly appealed, arguing that the evidence instead supported a finding of permanent total disability. The Court of Civil Appeals reversed the judgment and remanded the case, holding that no reasonable view of the evidence supported the 15% permanent partial disability award under the applicable workers' compensation standards and that the trial court must make a new determination of the extent of disability.

labor & employment

The case concerned the civil forfeiture of a $30,000 Pontiac Grand Am owned by Kevin Glenn Kelley after police found controlled substances inside the vehicle. Kelley had been charged only with possession, not distribution or trafficking. The Court of Civil Appeals affirmed the forfeiture without opinion. The core reasoning, as set out in the special concurrence, was that Alabama Code § 20-2-93(5) authorizes forfeiture of any vehicle used in any manner to facilitate possession of a controlled substance and that prior precedent permits forfeiture when a vehicle is used merely to transport drugs for personal use.

criminal lawproperty

In Cohen v. Baker, a divorced father appealed a trial court's post-divorce modification order that required him to pay ongoing post-minority support for his adult son, who became quadriparetic after a 1996 accident, plus reimbursement for uninsured medical and related expenses such as a hospital stay, van, and home renovations. The mother had petitioned to modify the 1992 divorce judgment to cover the son's needs after he reached majority, while the father cross-petitioned to split noncovered costs. The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals affirmed, applying the exception to the general rule against post-majority support when an adult child is physically disabled and unable to support himself, and finding the additional awards permissible under Rule 32 and the original decree's provisions for uninsured expenses.

family law