Traigle v. Gulf Coast Aluminum Corp.

399 So. 2d 183
Supreme Court of Louisiana·Decided May 18, 1981·No. 81-C-0068, 81-C-0084 and 81-C-0143·Published·Cited by 37 cases

Opinion

399 So.2d 183 (1981)

Joseph N. TRAIGLE, Collector of Revenue, State of Louisiana
v.
GULF COAST ALUMINUM CORPORATION, et al.
Robert PETERS
v.
LIVINGSTON WOOD PRODUCTS, INC., et al.
Kevin Roy SCALES
v.
STATE of Louisiana, State of Louisiana Department of Highways, ABC Architectural Firm, and Engineers A & B.

Nos. 81-C-0068, 81-C-0084 and 81-C-0143.

Supreme Court of Louisiana.

May 18, 1981.
Rehearing Denied June 22, 1981.

W. Steven Mannear, Riley F. Boudreaux, Baton Rouge, Jerry Blouin, New Orleans, for plaintiff-applicant in No. 81-C-0068.

G. William Jarman, Sanders, Downing, Kean & Cazedessus, Baton Rouge, for defendant-respondent in No. 81-C-0068.

Frank S. Bruno, Jerry Blouin, New Orleans, for plaintiff-relator in No. 81-C-0084.

Henry A. Mentz, Jr., Mentz & Cashe, Hammond, for defendant-respondent in No. 81-C-0084.

Raymond G. Jones, of Deutsch, Kerrigan & Stiles, New Orleans, for defendant-applicant in No. 81-C-0143.

John P. Massicot, of Silvestri, Marinaro, Massicot & Davis, New Orleans, for plaintiff-respondent in No. 81-C-0143.

WATSON, Justice.

Writs were granted in these consolidated cases to consider whether an appeal should *184 be dismissed when a timely motion for appeal is made but the court order is not signed within the delays allowed. LSA-C.C.P. art. 2121.[1]

FACTS

TRAIGLE v. GULF COAST ALUMINUM:

Copies of a signed judgment in favor of defendants were mailed to the parties on January 30, 1980. The delay for applying for a new trial expired on February 8, 1980. LSA-C.C.P. art. 1974.[2] The delay for a devolutive appeal expired sixty days later on April 8. LSA-C.C.P. art. 2087.[3] On March 6, a "Petition and Order for Appeal" was filed with the clerk of court but no order of appeal was attached. An order of appeal was mailed to the clerk of court on April 2 and received on April 7.[4] The order was signed by the district judge on April 14, 1980, after the delay for devolutive appeal had run.

Defendants filed a motion to dismiss the unlodged appeal on the ground that it was not timely. The Court of Appeal, en banc, dismissed plaintiff's appeal.[5] The First Circuit held that an appeal can be perfected only when a timely signature is obtained on the order of appeal. An earlier decision to the contrary in Hall v. Board of Supervisors, 387 So.2d 643 (La.App. 1 Cir. 1980) was overruled.

PETERS v. LIVINGSTON WOOD PRODUCTS:

The judgment was signed and mailed on February 28, 1980. No motion for new trial was filed, and the time for taking a devolutive appeal expired on May 9, 1980. Plaintiff filed a petition and order of appeal on April 3, 1980, but the order was not signed until May 12.

The defendants moved for dismissal on the ground that the order was not timely. *185 The First Circuit relied on Traigle, supra, and dismissed the appeal.[6]

SCALES v. STATE OF LOUISIANA:

An exception of prescription on behalf of one defendant was sustained by judgment on January 17, 1980. The time for taking a devolutive appeal expired on March 28. Plaintiff filed a petition and order of appeal on March 17, but the order was not signed until June 17, 1980.

The Court of Appeal issued an ex proprio motu rule to show cause why the appeal should not be dismissed and then determined that the rule should be recalled and vacated.[7] The Fourth Circuit concluded that, when a motion for appeal is timely filed with the clerk of court, the failure of the trial court to sign the motion during the delay period does not automatically result in dismissal of the appeal. The Fourth Circuit stated its agreement with Hall, supra, while noting that it had been overruled by the First Circuit in Traigle. A conflict in the circuits resulted.

CONCLUSION

The First Circuit held in Traigle and Peters that, under LSA-C.C.P. art. 2121, an order of appeal must be obtained, i. e. signed, within the delay allowed or the appeal will be dismissed as untimely.

In Scales, the Fourth Circuit relied on LSA-C.C.P. art. 2161[8] and concluded that failure to obtain the trial judge's signature timely is not an error or defect imputable to the appellant.

The signing of an order of devolutive appeal has become a mere formality. As originally written, LSA-C.C.P. art. 2124 required that security be furnished for a devolutive appeal.[9] LSA-C.C.P. art. 2121 required that the order of appeal fix the amount of the appeal bond to be furnished.[10] Since the bond had to be furnished within the delay provided for taking an appeal, the order also had to be signed during that period.[11] Since Article 2124 has been amended to eliminate security for devolutive *186 appeals,[12] the trial court is no longer required to fix an appeal bond. The signing of a devolutive appeal order has been reduced to a formality.

The articles of the Code of Civil Procedure are to be construed liberally and are not an end in themselves.[13] The right to appeal has constitutional sanction. Appeals are favored in the law and aided by the courts.[14]

LSA-C.C.P. art. 253 requires that all pleadings filed in an action be delivered to the clerk of court who shall retain possession of them.[15] The clerk is required by law to retain possession of a motion and order for appeal. This requirement deprives an appellant of any absolute right to personally deliver his order to the trial judge for signature.[16] After pleadings are filed, the clerk of court has a duty to obtain a judge's signature on documents which require it.

The trial judge is not the only individual who can grant an order of appeal. In all parishes but Orleans, the clerk of court, and his chief deputy clerk, are authorized by LSA-C.C.P. art. 282 to grant appeals.[17]

When an appellant timely files an order of appeal with the clerk of court, he has delivered it to a public official who has a duty to obtain the judge's signature thereon or sign it himself. When a timely filed order of appeal is not signed during the delay period, this is not a fault or defect imputable to the appellant. LSA-C.C.P. art. 2161 mandates that no appeal shall be dismissed unless the error or fault is imputable to the appellant. Therefore, no appeal shall be dismissed when the motion for appeal is filed timely but the order is not signed until after the delay has run.[18]

For the foregoing reasons the following is ordered in these consolidated cases:

The decision of the First Circuit, Court of Appeal in Traigle v. Gulf Coast Aluminum Corporation, No. 81-C-0068, dismissing the appellant's appeal, is reversed, the appeal is reinstated and the case is remanded.

REVERSED AND REMANDED.

The decision of the First Circuit, Court of Appeal in Peters v. Livingston Wood Products, Inc., et al, No. 81-C-0084, dismissing *187 the appellant's appeal, is reversed, the appeal is reinstated, and the case is remanded.

REVERSED AND REMANDED.

The decision of the Fourth Circuit, Court of Appeal in Scales v. State of Louisiana, No. 81-C-0143, recalling and vacating its ex proprio motu rule to show cause why the appeal should not be dismissed, is affirmed and the case is remanded.

AFFIRMED AN

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Traigle v. Gulf Coast Aluminum Corp., 399 So. 2d 183 (La. 1981).

399 So. 2d 183 (Traigle v. Gulf Coast Aluminum Corp.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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