Shrimpton v. Superior Court of L. A.Cty.

139 P.2d 889, 22 Cal. 2d 562, 1943 Cal. LEXIS 205
CourtCalifornia Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 27, 1943
DocketL. A. 18644
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 139 P.2d 889 (Shrimpton v. Superior Court of L. A.Cty.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Shrimpton v. Superior Court of L. A.Cty., 139 P.2d 889, 22 Cal. 2d 562, 1943 Cal. LEXIS 205 (Cal. 1943).

Opinions

CURTIS, J.

In an action entitled Acker v. Baldwin, 18 Cal.2d 341 [115 P.2d 455], pending in the Superior Court of the County of Los Angeles, plaintiff on April 17, 1942, recovered judgment against the defendants. Petitioner was one of the defendants in said action. Defendants, within the permissible time, served a notice of intention to move for a new trial. Subsequently said motion was made and the trial court at the hearing thereof on June 22, 1942, made an order vacating the findings and judgment and dismissed the action on the ground that it had no jurisdiction of the action. On July 7, 1942, there was entered a formal judgment of dismissal. Thereafter and on August 12, 1942, and after notice to defendants, plaintiff moved the court to set aside said order and judgment of dismissal on the ground that said order was void and in excess of the jurisdiction of said court. This [563]*563motion was made under section 473 of the Code of Civil Procedure authorizing the court, on motion after notice to the other party to set aside any void judgment or order. On August 19, 1942, the trial court granted said motion and set aside and vacated both the order vacating the findings and judgment and the formal judgment of July 7, 1942, based upon said order. The effect of this order of August 19, 1942, if valid, would be to restore the original judgment rendered in that action in favor of the plaintiffs.

Thereupon the petitioner, as one of the defendants in said action, instituted this proceeding in certiorari to review the last mentioned order of the trial court of date, August 19, 1942. It is the contention of petitioner that the judgment of date, July 7, 1942, dismissing said action, was a valid and final judgment and that the trial court was without jurisdiction to vacate the final judgment.

Preliminary to the discussion of the merits of this controversy, it is necessary to consider and pass upon the point raised by respondents, that certiorari will not lie to review the order of August 19, 1942, for the reason that it is an order made after final judgment and therefore is appealable.

Section 1068, Code of Civil Procedure, provides that “A writ of review may be granted by any court, except a municipal, police or justice’s court, when an inferior tribunal, board, or officer, exercising judicial functions, has exceeded the jurisdiction of such tribunal, board, or officer, and there is no appeal, nor, in the judgment of the court, any plain,' speedy, and adequate remedy. ’ ’

We deem it unnecessary to do any more than cite a few of the decisions of this court holding “certiorari will not lie to review an appealable order or judgment either before or after the expiration of the time limited by law for appeal therefrom.” (Ivory v. Superior Court, 12 Cal.2d 455, 459 [85 P.2d 894]; Harth v. Ten Eyck, 12 Cal.2d 709 [87 P.2d 693], 16 Cal.2d 829 [108 P.2d 675]; Coan v. Superior Court, 14 Cal.2d 591 [95 P.2d 931] ; Howaldt v. Superior Court, 18 Cal.2d 114 [114 P.2d 333]; Bank of America v. Superior Court, 20 Cal.2d 697, 703 [128 P.2d 357] ; Lewith v. Rehmke, 215 Cal. 241 [9 P.2d 297] ; Casner v. Superior Court, 23 Cal.App.2d 730 [74 P.2d 298].) In the last named case at page 732, we [564]*564find the following statement of the law: “The order of the court vacating the judgment of dismissal was a special order made after final judgment, as were also the respective orders for judgment in defendants ’ favor, and, as such, were appeal-able under the provisions of section 963 of the Code of Civil Procedure, [citing authorities] . . . Where the law allows an appeal from an order or judgment, even when the tribunal making such order or rendering such judgment exceeds its. authority in so doing, a writ of review may not be granted, [citing authorities.] ”

As against these decisions, we are cited to the following cases decided by this court, which, it is claimed, support a contrary rule: Stanton v. Superior Court, 202 Cal. 478, 488 [261 P. 1001]; Lankton v. Superior Court, 5 Cal.2d 694, 696 [55 P.2d 1170] ; Treat v. Superior Court, 7 Cal.2d 636, 638 [62 P.2d 147] ; Whitley v. Superior Court, 18 Cal.2d 75 [113 P.2d 449]. In our opinion these cases can all be distinguished from the decisions holding that certiorari will not lie to review an appealable order.

In Stanton v. Superior Court, supra, the trial court in two actions pending before it made an order in each case purporting to vacate the judgment previously entered therein, and directed a different judgment, and signed and entered the same in lieu of the former judgment. On appeal the court recited the steps taken in the two actions before the trial court resulting in the orders vacating the original judgments and the entry of the different judgments in the place of the former judgments. The court also discussed the power of the trial court, and the procedure to be followed under sections 473, 663, and 663a of the Code of Civil Procedure, governing the vacation of judgments and the entry of different judgments in the same actions, and concluded as follows: (page 489) “We are, therefore, satisfied that said sections of the code were never intended to apply to orders or judgments attempted after the fashion herein disclosed. We are- also satisfied that neither of these orders or subsequent judgments can be said. to be special orders made after final judgment within the meaning of section 963 of the Code of Civil Procedure, because such section contemplates orders given by a court having jurisdiction to act.” The court, therefore, in the Stanton case held that as the orders in question were not special orders made after final judgment, they were not ap[565]*565pealable and were therefore subject to review under proceedings in certiorari. Reference to this case may be found in Ivory v. Superior Court, supra, and Bank of America v. Superior Court, supra.

In Lankton v. Superior Court, supra, after the judgment in favor of the plaintiff had become final and the time for appeal and motion for new trial had elapsed, the trial court in a memorandum opinion indicated its purpose to reduce the amount of the judgment in favor of plaintiff in a material amount. Plaintiff applied either for a writ of prohibition or a writ of review. It was held that he was entitled to a writ of prohibition but not a writ of review, as no order modifying the judgment had been actually made by the trial court.

In Treat v.

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Shrimpton v. Superior Court of L. A.Cty.
139 P.2d 889 (California Supreme Court, 1943)

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Bluebook (online)
139 P.2d 889, 22 Cal. 2d 562, 1943 Cal. LEXIS 205, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/shrimpton-v-superior-court-of-l-acty-cal-1943.