Grantt Guillory Enterprises, Inc. v. Quebedeaux

110 So. 3d 182, 2012 La.App. 3 Cir. 931, 2013 WL 440159, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 187
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 6, 2013
DocketNo. 12-931
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 110 So. 3d 182 (Grantt Guillory Enterprises, Inc. v. Quebedeaux) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Grantt Guillory Enterprises, Inc. v. Quebedeaux, 110 So. 3d 182, 2012 La.App. 3 Cir. 931, 2013 WL 440159, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 187 (La. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

AMY, Judge.

_JjThe plaintiff is the owner of a seafood processing plant that it leased to the defendant. Thereafter, the plaintiff filed suit, seeking to evict the defendant on the basis that the defendant breached the terms of the lease by failing to pay rent and by failing to obtain liability insurance. The plaintiff also sought to collect the unpaid rent and obtained a writ of sequestration on the defendant’s property. The defendant denied that he owed any rent and attempted to have the writ of sequestration dissolved. After a hearing on those issues, the trial court denied the defendant’s request to have the writ of sequestration dissolved and ordered that the defendant be evicted from the premises. At a subsequent trial on the issue of unpaid rent, the trial court found that there was unpaid rent and awarded the plaintiff that amount and attorney’s fees. The defendant appeals. For the following reasons, we affirm.

[185]*185Factual and Procedural Background

The plaintiff, Grantt Guillory Enterprises, Inc., d/b/a Kajun Seafood (Guillory Enterprises), is the owner of a seafood processing plant in St. Landry Parish. The record indicates that Grantt Guillory is the president of Guillory Enterprises and that his father, Nelson Guillory, is the secretary/treasurer of the corporation. The record further indicates that Guillory Enterprises entered into a twelve-month lease with the defendant, Floyd Quebe-deaux, for the processing plant starting on July 1, 2010. The lease provided that the amount of rent due each month was $6,200.00 and that Quebedeaux was required to maintain liability insurance in the amount of $1,000,000.00.

In April of 2011, Guillory Enterprises filed suit, seeking to evict Quebedeaux from the premises and to collect past due rent. Guillory Enterprises also sought, and was granted, a writ of sequestration. Quebedeaux denied that he was behind on the rental payments and asserted that he had maintained the liability insurance required by ]2the lease. Thereafter, Quebe-deaux filed a motion to have the writ of sequestration dissolved and Guillory Enterprises filed a motion to evict. The trial court scheduled a hearing on those issues, but continued it so that Quebedeaux could obtain business records that were located at the processing plant. After the hearing was conducted, the trial court maintained the writ of sequestration and denied Que-bedeaux’s motion to dissolve the writ. The trial court also granted the motion to evict.

Trial was subsequently held to determine the amount of rent owed to Guillory Enterprises by Quebedeaux. The trial court determined that Quebedeaux owed $82,589.81 in outstanding rent. After a credit of $1,993.00 for perishables sold by Guillory Enterprises, the total owed was $30,596.31. The trial court awarded Guil-lory Enterprises $6,300.00 in attorney’s fees. Further, the trial court acknowledged that the plaintiff had a lessor’s lien on movables which were at the processing plant and maintained the writ of sequestration.

Quebedeaux appeals, asserting as “issues for determination” that:

1. Defendant[’]s Constitutional rights were violated.
2. Defendant did not get a fair trial due to lack of evidence.
3. Defendant was trialed twice on the same exact case [sic].
4. Plaintiffs and Sheriffs’ Department failed to follow procedure during the sequestration.
5. Plaintiffs and Sheriffs’ Department disobeyed the courts order, denying the defendant his evidence.
6. Plaintiffs failed to issue an eviction notice for past due rent and/or lack of proof of insurance, as required by the lease agreement.
7. Sequestration and eviction were falsely alleged by the plaintiffs.
8. Defendant alleges there was a conflict of interest.

Discussion

Constitutional Issues

Several of Quebedeaux’s arguments address his concerns that his constitutional rights were violated, including the rights to due process and a fair trial and the prohibition against double jeopardy. • Que-bedeaux also argues that the issuance of the writ of sequestration was a violation of the prohibition against search and seizure.

|<¡In order to invoke the due process clause of either U.S. Const, amend. XIV or La. Const. art. 1, § 2, the claimant must first show that “some property or liberty interest has been adversely affect[186]*186ed by state action.” Fontenot v. Sw. La. Hosp. Ass’n, 00-129, p. 10 (La.App. 8 Cir. 12/6/00), 775 So.2d 1111, 1117 (quoting Price v. U-Haul Co. of La., 98-1959 (La.9/8/99), 745 So.2d 593), writ denied, 01-390 (La.4/12/01), 789 So.2d 596. Thus, as Quebedeaux has not shown that Guillo-ry Enterprises is a state actor, his assertion that his right to due process was violated is without merit.

With regard to his contention that he was denied his right to a fair trial “due to lack of evidence,” Quebedeaux is apparently arguing a violation of his rights under U.S. Const. amend. VI and La. Const. art. 1, § 16. However, there is no discussion of those issues in Quebedeaux’s appellate brief. “All specifications or assignments of error must be briefed. The court may consider as abandoned any specification or assignment of error which has not been briefed.” Uniform Rules— Courts of Appeal, Rule 2-12.4. Accordingly, we decline to consider Quebedeaux’s argument concerning any alleged violations of his right to a fair trial.1

Similarly, Quebedeaux’s contention that the writ of sequestration was an unconstitutional search and seizure was not an issue that was presented to the trial court. Although Quebedeaux asserted various other alleged constitutional defects, this court was unable to locate any allegations in the record that the writ of sequestration was a violation of either U.S. Const, amend. IV or La. Const, art. 1, § 5. Thus, this|4issue was not raised in the trial court and is not properly before this court for consideration. Uniform Rules—Courts of Appeal, Rule 1-3. For this reason, we do not address Quebedeaux’s argument in this regard.

Accordingly, we find no merit to Quebe-deaux’s arguments concerning alleged violations of his constitutional rights.

Res Judicata and/or “Law of the Case

Quebedeaux also asserts that the constitutional prohibition against double jeopardy was violated because he was tried “twice on the same exact case.” The concept of double jeopardy stems from both U.S. Const, amend. V and La. Const, art. 1, § 15. It applies to criminal prosecutions and prohibits a person from being twice put “in jeopardy of life or liberty for the same offense.” La.Code Crim.P. art. 591. The record indicates that this suit is a civil case and not a criminal prosecution. Accordingly, the prohibition against double jeopardy does not apply.

However, while incorrectly titled, Quebedeaux’s argument is that the trial court erred in failing to apply either the doctrine of res judicata2

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Bluebook (online)
110 So. 3d 182, 2012 La.App. 3 Cir. 931, 2013 WL 440159, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 187, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/grantt-guillory-enterprises-inc-v-quebedeaux-lactapp-2013.