Henry v. Miss. Dep't of Employment Sec.
| Docket Number: | 2009-CC-01132-COA | |
| Court of Appeals: |
Opinion Link Opinion Date: 12-14-2010 Opinion Author: Ishee, J. Holding: Affirmed. |
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| Additional Case Information: |
Topic: Unemployment benefits - Abandonment of appeal Judge(s) Concurring: King, C.J., Lee and Myers, P.JJ., Irving, Griffis, Barnes, Roberts, Carlton and Maxwell, JJ. Procedural History: Admin or Agency Judgment Nature of the Case: CIVIL - STATE BOARDS AND AGENCIES |
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| Trial Court: |
Date of Trial Judgment: 06-05-2009 Appealed from: DeSoto County Circuit Court Judge: Robert P. Chamberlin Disposition: AFFIRMED THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYMENT SECURITY’S DENIAL OF UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION BENEFITS AND DETERMINATION THAT CLAIMANT HAD ABANDONED HIS APPEAL Case Number: CV2008-0403CD |
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| Party Name: | Attorney Name: | Brief(s) Available: | ||
| Appellant: | James C. Henry |
PRO SE |
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| Appellee: | Mississippi Department of Employment Security | LEANNE F. BRADY, ALBERT B. WHITE | ||
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: | Unemployment benefits - Abandonment of appeal |
| Summary of the Facts: | James Henry was discharged from Walmart after Walmart claimed he had violated company policy prohibiting dishonesty by returning a DVD left by a customer as if it were a DVD that he had purchased. Henry applied for unemployment benefits. The Mississippi Department of Employment Security concluded that Henry had made a fraudulent refund of the DVD and, hence, had committed misconduct which disqualified him from receiving unemployment benefits. Henry filed an appeal to the Board of Review of the MDES. On the day of the telephonic hearing, the AJ attempted to contact Henry but was unable to reach him at the number he had provided. The AJ left a voice-mail message advising Henry he had a limited time in which to return the AJ’s call and participate in the hearing. The record reflects that Henry did not return the call within the allotted amount of time, and the AJ concluded that Henry had abandoned his appeal. Consequently, the AJ dismissed Henry’s claim. Henry appealed the AJ’s decision to the Board. The Board affirmed and adopted the AJ’s findings that Henry’s workplace misconduct had disqualified him from receiving unemployment benefits and that he had abandoned his appeal. Henry appealed to circuit court which affirmed. Henry appeals. |
| Summary of Opinion Analysis: | Henry was notified of the telephonic hearing by mail eleven days before the hearing was to take place. Included in the Notice were the date and time of the hearing and instructions of how to phone into the hearing should Henry fail to receive a telephone call from the AJ. Also included in the Notice was language advising him that failure to participate would constitute effective dismissal of his case and reinstatement of the Board’s original Decision. An appealing party’s failure to participate in a scheduled hearing may properly be deemed abandonment of the appeal and, therefore, grounds for dismissal. Since Henry had abandoned his appeal, the issue of whether the original Decision disqualifying him from receiving unemployment benefits is supported by substantial evidence will not be addressed. |
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