Henderson Specialties, Inc. v. Boone County Circuit Court

971 S.W.2d 234, 334 Ark. 111
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedJune 9, 1998
Docket98-410
StatusPublished
Cited by18 cases

This text of 971 S.W.2d 234 (Henderson Specialties, Inc. v. Boone County Circuit Court) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Henderson Specialties, Inc. v. Boone County Circuit Court, 971 S.W.2d 234, 334 Ark. 111 (Ark. 1998).

Opinion

Donald L. Corbin, Justice.

Petitioner Henderson Specialties, Inc., of Russellville petitions this court for a writ of prohibition against Respondent Boone County Circuit Court; hence, our jurisdiction is pursuant to Ark. Sup. Ct. R. 1-2(a)(3). Petitioner raises two points in support of its petition, arguing that Respondent does not have venue to hear the action that Quality Feed Grains, Inc. (Quality), brought against Petitioner. We deny the writ.

On April 11, 1990, Petitioner filed suit against Quality and its owners in the Boone County Chancery Court, seeking foreclosure on a materialman’s lien. Petitioner, through its agent Paul Henderson and its employees, had performed construction in 1989 for Quality, consisting of additions and improvements to Quality’s existing feed mill in Boone County. Quality counterclaimed, alleging negligent construction. On April 8, 1993, the Boone County Chancery Court transferred Quality’s counterclaim to the Pope County Circuit Court, as it was not an equity matter, and, on April 21, 1993, rendered judgment in favor of Petitioner in the foreclosure action. On December 19, 1995, the Pope County Circuit Court granted Quality’s motion for voluntary nonsuit of its counterclaim.

On December 17, 1996, Quality refiled its counterclaim against Petitioner in the Boone County Circuit Court, alleging negligent construction and seeking both compensatory and punitive damages. On April 29, 1997, Petitioner moved for dismissal pursuant to ARCP Rule 12(b)(3), on the basis that Quality failed to state facts to establish venue in the Boone County Circuit Court. 1 The circuit court denied Petitioner’s motion to dismiss in an order entered on March 3, 1998, finding that Boone County is the proper place of venue for the action. Petitioner next filed this petition.

A writ of prohibition is extraordinary relief; hence, we grant it only when the trial court completely lacks, or exceeds, its jurisdiction, and there is no other remedy available. Boatman’s Nat’l Bank v. Cole, 329 Ark. 209, 947 S.W.2d 362 (1997). Venue, however, is a procedural, rather than jurisdictional, issue. Id. This court will grant a writ of prohibition for improper venue only when there are no disputed facts regarding venue. Prairie Implement Co., Inc. v. Circuit Court of Prairie County, 311 Ark. 200, 844 S.W.2d 299 (1992). A writ of prohibition is also inappropriate where the inferences drawn from undisputed facts might lead to different legal conclusions about their effect. See Porter Foods, Inc. v. Brown, 281 Ark. 148, 661 S.W.2d 388 (1983) (holding that the writ should not be granted if personal jurisdiction turns on a question of fact, which the trial court should properly determine). See also Tucker Enterprises, Inc. v. Hartje, 278 Ark. 320, 650 S.W.2d 559 (1983); Wisconsin Brick & Block Corp. v. Cole, 274 Ark. 121, 622 S.W.2d 192 (1981).

Petitioner first argues that Quality’s complaint fails to state facts supporting Respondent’s finding that venue is properly in the Boone County Circuit Court. In order to determine if a complaint lacks facts to support venue, our review is limited to the pleadings; thus, the proof is irrelevant. Boatman’s, 329 Ark. 209, 947 S.W.2d 362. We must also ascertain the character of the action and the primary right asserted from the face of the complaint. Fraser Bros. v. Darragh Co., 316 Ark. 297, 871 S.W.2d 367 (1994). Accordingly, we review the complaint in depth.

Paragraph No. 1 of the complaint alleges that Quality, is an Arkansas business corporation, “with its principal place of business being situated in Boone County[.]” Paragraph No. 2 further alleges that Petitioner is an Arkansas business corporation, “with its principal place of business being situated in Russellville, Pope County, Arkansas.” Paragraph No. 3 alleges “[t]hat this Court has jurisdiction of the subject matter of the Complaint, and of the parties hereto, and venue for [Quality’s] cause of action is proper with this Court.” Paragraph Nos. 4 and 5 allege that Quality “operates a feed mill in Boone County,” and, further, that Quality contacted Petitioner in August of 1989 about the feasibility of constructing improvements to the Boone County feed mill. Paragraph Nos. 6, 7, and 8 provide in relevant part:

(6)
That [Petitioner] . . . made numerous material and specific representations to the representatives of [Quality] that [Petitioner] was a specialized construction company which specialized in the construction of feed mills and additions to feed mills . . . and that [Petitioner], its representatives and employees . . . could construct the improvements and make the requested additions to the existing feed mill of [Quality] ....
(7)
That [Petitioner] . . . failed to construct the improvements and additions to feed mill of [Quality] within the degree of skill and care ordinarily possessed and used by such contractors doing work of similar nature, and further failed to construct said improvements with the proper standards of the construction industry.
(8)
That [Petitioner] . . . improperly and negligently constructed the improvements and additions to the feed mill of [Quality] which resulted in serious damages being sustained to the existing feed mill of [Quality], and specifically serious damages were sustained to many of the specialized parts of the feed mill including but not limited to the pellet mill, scales, cables, hammermill, spouting, cooling system, bins, and many other integral parts of the feed mill. [Emphasis added.]

The complaint further alleges compensatory and punitive damages sustained by Quality’s mill, and the items of personal property set forth in Paragraph No. 8, which were necessarily located in Boone County. Paragraph No. 10 alleges that Petitioner directly and proximately caused the alleged damages in Boone County through its improper construction and negligent workmanship. We conclude that Quality adequately pled facts to support venue in Boone County, and that Respondent properly determined venue on disputed facts and inferences therefrom. This court has repeatedly held that prohibition will not he in such circumstances. Porter Foods, 281 Ark. 148, 661 S.W.2d 388; Murry v. Maner, 230 Ark. 132, 320 S.W.2d 940 (1959); Finley v. Moose, 74 Ark. 217, 85 S.W. 238 (1905).

Paragraph Nos. 8 and 10 also reveal that the primary action asserted sounds in tort.

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Bluebook (online)
971 S.W.2d 234, 334 Ark. 111, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/henderson-specialties-inc-v-boone-county-circuit-court-ark-1998.