R. N. Turnbow Oil Inv. v. McIntosh, et al.
| Docket Number: | 2003-CA-00050-SCT Linked Case(s): 2003-CA-00050-SCT |
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| Supreme Court: | Opinion Link Opinion Date: 03-18-2004 Opinion Author: Dickinson, J. Holding: Reversed and Rendered |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Real property - Relief from judgment - Clerical error - M.R.C.P. 60(a) - Mistake - M.R.C.P. 60(b)(2) Judge(s) Concurring: Pittman, C.J., Smith and Waller, P.JJ., Easley, Carlson and Graves, JJ. Non Participating Judge(s): Diaz, J. Concurs in Result Only: Cobb, J. Procedural History: Summary Judgment Nature of the Case: Real Property |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 12-13-2002 Appealed from: Covington County Chancery Court Judge: J. Larry Buffington Disposition: Granted summary judgment to the Appellees. Case Number: 01-237 |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | |||
| Appellant: | R. N. Turnbow Oil Investments |
GLENN GATES TAYLOR
DONALD JAMES BLACKWOOD, JR. |
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| Appellee: | Mrs. Maurice T. McIntosh, Grace Fulghum, Ann Fagan Tolbert, Walter Fagan, III | SI M. BONDURANT |
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Synopsis provided by:  If you are interested in subscribing to the weekly synopses of all Mississippi Supreme Court and Court of Appeals hand downs please contact Tammy Upton in the MLI Press office. |
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| Topic: | Real property - Relief from judgment - Clerical error - M.R.C.P. 60(a) - Mistake - M.R.C.P. 60(b)(2) |
| Summary of the Facts: | In 1932, H. M. McIntosh filed suit in the Covington County Chancery Court against R. N. Turnbow, who failed to file an answer, resulting in a default judgment. The court entered two decrees, and no appeal was taken from either decree. In 2000, natural gas wells were successfully drilled on land which was described in exhibits to the McIntosh complaint, but which was not described in any of the decrees entered by the chancellor. The next year, the McIntosh heirs, Mrs. Maurice T. McIntosh, Mrs. Grace Fulghum, Mrs. Ann Fagan Tolbert and Walter Fagan III, filed a suit against R.N. Turnbow Oil Investments, the successor to Turnbow's partnership interests–seeking a declaratory judgment that they were entitled to half the royalties produced by the natural gas wells. They also sought a declaratory judgment fully describing the land which should have been covered by the first decree. The chancellor granted summary judgment to the McIntosh's heirs, and Turnbow Oil appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | The McIntosh heirs argue that equitable powers of the chancery court are broad enough to grant relief awarded by the trial court. M.R.C.P. 60(a) provides relief from clerical mistakes by allowing a court to amend decrees to correct clerical errors without regard to the passage of time. “Clerical error” is defined as an error resulting from a minor mistake or inadvertence, especially in writing or copying something on the record, and not from judicial reasoning or determination. The failure of the chancellor to include certain real property in the 1933 decree cannot be characterized as “clerical error.” Although M.R.C.P. 60(b)(2) allows the court to amend the decree because of accident or mistake, motions based upon this reason must be filed within six months after the judgment was entered. Since the action was filed outside the six-month period for filing such claims, the relief sought by the McIntosh heirs is time-barred. |
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