Price v. Kids World

9 So. 3d 992, 2008 La.App. 1 Cir. 1815, 2009 La. App. LEXIS 456, 2009 WL 837878
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedMarch 27, 2009
Docket2008 CA 1815
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 9 So. 3d 992 (Price v. Kids World) 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
Price v. Kids World, 9 So. 3d 992, 2008 La.App. 1 Cir. 1815, 2009 La. App. LEXIS 456, 2009 WL 837878 (La. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

GUIDRY, J.

12AppelIant, Kelda Price, appeals from the judgment of the district court, dismissing her claims against the defendants, Kids World, Ankur Brambhatt, and Small World. For the reasons that follow, we affirm.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

On July 17, 2006, Kelda Price filed a petition for damages, pro se, contending that the defendants’ acts of negligence and discrimination resulted in damages for mental grief; loss of love, affection, and companionship; and emotional distress, anguish, humiliation, and loss of enjoyment of life. Thereafter, on August 18, 2006, Price filed a motion for preliminary default, contending that the defendants had failed to timely file an answer to her petition. On August 23, 2006, the district court signed a judgment of default, finding that the defendants had failed to answer within the time prescribed by law. Additionally, the judgment adjudged that Price “have judgment and recover against defendants upon premise, damages for past, present, and future sufferings, mental anguish[,] emotional distress, humiliation, *994 and all general and equitable relief from the date of [j Judicial demand together with legal interest until finally paid and for the cost of these proceedings.”

On August 24, 2006, the defendants filed an answer to Price’s petition and asserted declinatory exceptions raising the objections of insufficiency of citation and insufficiency of service of process, and dilatory exceptions raising the objections of vagueness and nonconformity of the petition with the requirements of La. C.C.P. art. 891. Thereafter, Price filed a motion to confirm the preliminary default judgment, which was set for a hearing. The defendants subsequently filed a motion to strike the default judgment and motion to compel discovery responses. Following a hearing on the parties’ motions, the district court signed a judgment on February 28, 2007, sustaining all of defendants’ exceptions and granting the | ¡¡defendants’ motion to strike. The judgment ordered that the default judgment signed on August 23, 2006, be striken from the record and gave Price thirty days to amend her petition to remove the grounds for the objections or face dismissal of her action with prejudice.

On December 20, 2007, the district coui't signed another judgment, giving Price an additional thirty days to comply with the judgment of February 28th and ordering her to amend her petition to remove the grounds for the objections, in default of which, Price’s action against the defendants would be dismissed with prejudice. On January 16, 2008, Price filed an amended petition for damages; however, the petition merely added the natural father of Price’s children as an additional plaintiff, and did not correct the deficiencies as contained in the February 28, 2007 judgment. Accordingly, on January 30, 2008, the defendants filed a rule to show cause why Price’s petition for damages should not be dismissed for failure to comply with the court’s conditions and terms reflected in the December 20, 2007 judgment.

On July 29, 2008, the district court signed a judgment dismissing Price’s claims against the defendants with prejudice. Price now appeals from this judgment.

DISCUSSION

On appeal, Price seeks review of the district court’s dismissal of her claims against the defendants, as well as review of the trial court’s interlocutory judgments striking the default judgment from the record and granting defendants’ exceptions. When an unrestricted appeal is taken from a final judgment, the appellant is entitled to seek review of all adverse interlocutory judgments prejudicial to her, in addition to the review of the final judgment. Judson v. Davis, 04-1699, p. 8 (La. App. 1st Cir.6/29/05), 916 So.2d 1106, 1112, writ denied, 05-1998 (La.2/10/06), 924 So.2d 167. Accordingly, we begin our discussion with | .(Whether the district court erred in granting defendants’ motion to strike the default judgment from the record.

As previously stated, Price filed a motion for preliminary default on August 18, 2006, asserting that the defendants were served with notice of the lawsuit on July 31, 2006, and failed to timely file an answer to her petition. On August 23, 2006, the district court entered judgment of default in favor of Price for the defendants’ failure to answer Price’s petition within the time prescribed by law. However, this “preliminary default” also adjudged that Price “have judgment and recover against defendants upon premise, damages for past, present, and future sufferings, mental anguish[,] emotional distress, humiliation, and all general and equitable relief from the date of [j Judicial demand together with *995 legal interest until finally paid and for the cost of these proceedings.”

Defendants subsequently answered Price’s petition and asserted several exceptions, including the declinatory exceptions raising the objections of insufficiency of service of process and insufficiency of citation. Following Price’s filing of her motion to confirm the default judgment, defendants urged their motion to strike the “preliminary default judgment” from the record.

Pursuant to La. C.C.P. art. 1001, a defendant shall file his answer within fifteen days after service of citation upon him, except as otherwise provided by law. If the defendant fails to answer within the time prescribed by law, judgment by default may be entered against him. La. C.C.P. art. 1701(A); Mitchell v. Bass, 01-2217, p. 3 (La.App. 1st Cir.11/8/02), 835 So.2d 778, 780. The judgment of default, or preliminary default, may be obtained by oral motion in open court or by written motion, and the judgment shall consist of merely an entry in the minutes. La. C.C.P. art. 1701(A).

The preliminary default judgment at issue, however, consists of more than just an entry in the minutes and purports to be a final judgment, granting Price |damages, interest, and court costs. Further, the defendants have alleged that Price failed to serve two of the named defendants, particularly Ankur Brambhatt, with process and citation. According to the record, there is no evidence that Mr. Brambhatt was ever served with a copy of Price’s petition prior to her filing the motion for preliminary default. It is well settled that a default judgment may not be taken against a person who has not received citation and service thereof. Mitchell 01-2217 at p. 3, 835 So.2d at 780. Accordingly, we find no error in the district court’s granting of defendants’ motion to strike. 1

With regard to the district court’s sustaining of defendants’ exceptions and ultimate dismissal of Price’s claims with prejudice, we likewise find no error. In the February 28, 2007 judgment, the district court sustained the defendants’ decli-natory exceptions raising the objections of insufficiency of service of process and insufficiency of citation, and dilatory exceptions raising the objections of vagueness and indefiniteness and nonconformity of the petition with La. C.C.P. art. 891. The district, court gave Price thirty days to amend her petition to effect service of process on Kids World and Ankur Bram-bhatt or face dismissal of her claims as to those two defendants, and also gave her thirty days to amend her petition to conform with La. C.C.P. art.

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9 So. 3d 992, 2008 La.App. 1 Cir. 1815, 2009 La. App. LEXIS 456, 2009 WL 837878, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/price-v-kids-world-lactapp-2009.