Ebony Poynter, as Administrator of the Estate of Isaiah Woodson v. Julius L. Johnson

CourtCourt of Appeals of Kentucky
DecidedFebruary 21, 2025
Docket2024-CA-0004
StatusPublished

This text of Ebony Poynter, as Administrator of the Estate of Isaiah Woodson v. Julius L. Johnson (Ebony Poynter, as Administrator of the Estate of Isaiah Woodson v. Julius L. Johnson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Ebony Poynter, as Administrator of the Estate of Isaiah Woodson v. Julius L. Johnson, (Ky. Ct. App. 2025).

Opinion

RENDERED: FEBRUARY 21, 2025; 10:00 A.M. TO BE PUBLISHED

Commonwealth of Kentucky Court of Appeals NO. 2024-CA-0004-MR

EBONY POYNTER, AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF ISAIAH WOODSON, DECEASED; AND MALIK STAFFORD APPELLANTS

APPEAL FROM JEFFERSON CIRCUIT COURT v. HONORABLE ANN BAILEY SMITH, JUDGE ACTION NO. 20-CI-005831

JULIUS L. JOHNSON AND GREG COATS CARS, INC. APPELLEES

OPINION VACATING AND REMANDING

** ** ** ** **

BEFORE: CALDWELL, A. JONES, AND TAYLOR, JUDGES.

CALDWELL, JUDGE: This appeal is from a partial summary judgment granted

in favor of an automobile dealer based on the trial court’s determination that the

dealer was not the statutory owner of a car involved in a fatal one-vehicle accident.

Faced with an issue of first impression, the trial court based its grant of summary

judgment on its application of the Transportation Cabinet Secretary’s early- COVID-era official order extending by 90 days expiration dates and/or deadlines

relating to vehicle registration and drivers’ licenses and permits. We find the trial

court erred in determining that the official order applied to extend a dealer’s duty

to promptly deliver title/registration documents on the buyer’s behalf to the county

clerk and granted summary judgment based solely on that order’s application.

Therefore, we vacate the grant of summary judgment and remand for further

proceedings consistent with this Opinion.

FACTS

Shortly after the Governor declared a state of emergency due to

COVID, the Secretary of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet issued Official

Order No. 112155 (“the official order”) on March 18, 2020. The official order

called for extending by 90 days expiration dates and deadlines relating to drivers’

licenses, permits, and vehicle registrations.

Meanwhile, Appellee Greg Coats Cars, Inc. (“GCC”) acquired a 2008

Dodge Charger (“the car”) from a dealership in West Virginia – also on March 18,

2020. The West Virginia dealership assigned a clean certificate of title on the car

to GCC on that same day. GCC admittedly did not notify the county clerk’s office

of the assignment of the car to its dealership within fifteen days. See KRS1

186A.220(1).

1 Kentucky Revised Statutes.

-2- On April 7, 2020, Julius L. Johnson (“Johnson”) purchased the car

from GCC. GCC personnel verified that Johnson had automobile liability

insurance at that time. Johnson executed a limited power of attorney, designating

GCC as his attorney-in-fact so it could deliver the certificate of title assignment

and the application for certificate of title and registration (collectively,

“title/registration documents”) on his behalf to the county clerk’s office. Johnson

also took possession of the vehicle on April 7, 2020. About two weeks later (on or

about April 23), Johnson’s insurer sent him a notice of recission of coverage

because his bank did not honor his premium payment.

On May 1, 2020, Johnson was driving the car when it was involved in

a single-vehicle accident. Malik Stafford (“Stafford”) was riding in the car and

was injured. Isaiah Woodson (“Woodson”) was also riding in the car and died.

On May 27, 2020, the title/registration documents were delivered to

the Jefferson County Clerk’s office for processing by GCC’s runner.2 In-person

services at the county clerk’s office had been shut down for several weeks,

although dealers were informed by email that they could drop off documents at

designated locations in county clerk’s offices for processing. After the application

2 The Appellants point out in their brief that a GCC employee notarized the certificate of title reassignment form on May 27, 2020 – the same date the registration/title documents were delivered to the county clerk’s office by GCC’s runner.

-3- for title and registration was processed, title was transferred to Johnson on June 1,

2020 – the same date that in-person services resumed at the county clerk’s office.

In the fall of 2020, Stafford and the administrator of Woodson’s estate

(collectively, “Appellants”) filed suit against Johnson and GCC. They alleged

their injuries were caused by Johnson negligently operating the car. They also

alleged that GCC negligently entrusted the car to Johnson.

Appellants also alleged in their complaint that GCC failed to properly

transfer title to Johnson pursuant to the requirements of KRS 186A.220(5). They

pointed out GCC was the title holder to the car at the time of the accident on May

1, 2020, and argued GCC should be required to extend insurance coverage to the

car. Appellants asserted they were entitled to basic reparation benefits from

GCC’s insurer, but GCC refused to respond to requests for policy information.

GCC filed an answer and discovery ensued. Both Appellants and

GCC later filed motions for partial summary judgment about whether GCC was the

statutory owner of the car for insurance purposes at the time of the fatal accident.

Ultimately, the trial court granted summary judgment in GCC’s favor

on the statutory owner issue, concluding the official order applied so the dealership

had at least 90 days in which to deliver the title/registration documents to the

county clerk. Despite GCC’s taking 50 days after the April 7th purchase date to

deliver the documents to the county clerk’s office, the trial court determined the

-4- delivery of the documents was well within the 90-day extension and the delay was

therefore justified.

Appellants filed a timely appeal from the trial court’s judgment.

They argue on appeal that the trial court erred in determining that the 90-day

extension in the official order applied to GCC’s delivery of the title/registration

documents to the county clerk’s office. Appellants also contend the trial court

erred in determining the delay in delivery was justified and that GCC was therefore

not the statutory owner of the car. Further facts will be provided as necessary.

ANALYSIS

Standard of Review

We review de novo (without deference) the trial court’s grant of

summary judgment and its determination that GCC was not the statutory owner of

the car. Zepeda v. Central Motors, Inc., 653 S.W.3d 59, 62 (Ky. 2022). Moreover,

we review the trial court’s interpretation of the official order and legal authority

including statutes and precedent de novo. See Fletcher v. Graham, 192 S.W.3d

350, 356 (Ky. 2006) (“[Q]uestions of law are reviewed de novo.”).

Basic Principles for Determining the Statutory Owner of a Car

As our Supreme Court recently discussed in Zepeda, Kentucky is “a

certificate of title state for the purpose of determining ownership and for requiring

liability insurance coverage[.]” 653 S.W.3d at 62. This means that: “Unless

-5- certain statutory provisions are met, [t]he owner of a motor vehicle is the title

holder[.]” Travelers Indemnity Company v. Armstrong, 565 S.W.3d 550, 556 (Ky.

2018) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

For example, the owner of a car for insurance purposes can, under

certain circumstances, be a purchaser who has taken physical possession of a car in

a bona fide sale even if the purchaser does not yet hold legal title to the car. See

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Related

Auto Acceptance Corp. v. T.I.G. Insurance Co.
89 S.W.3d 398 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 2002)
Fletcher v. Graham
192 S.W.3d 350 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 2006)
Steelvest, Inc. v. Scansteel Service Center, Inc.
807 S.W.2d 476 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 1991)
Ellis v. Browning Pontiac-Chevrolet-GMC Truck-Geo, Inc.
125 S.W.3d 306 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2003)
Klein v. Flanery
439 S.W.3d 107 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 2014)
Travelers Indem. Co. v. Armstrong
565 S.W.3d 550 (Missouri Court of Appeals, 2018)

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Ebony Poynter, as Administrator of the Estate of Isaiah Woodson v. Julius L. Johnson, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ebony-poynter-as-administrator-of-the-estate-of-isaiah-woodson-v-julius-kyctapp-2025.