Valentine v. Senior Care, Inc.

2020 Ark. App. 304

• Court: Court of Appeals of Arkansas
• Decided: May 13, 2020
• Status: Published

Opinion

Cite as 2020 Ark. App. 304 Reason: I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this ARKANSAS COURT OF APPEALS document Date: 2021-07-07 12:13:35 DIVISION III Foxit PhantomPDF Version: No. CV-19-554 9.7.5

LULA VALENTINE, INDIVIDUALLY Opinion Delivered: May 13, 2020 AND AS PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ESTATE OF ISDEE VALENTINE, DECEASED; AND ON BEHALF OF THE APPEAL FROM THE WHITE WRONGFUL DEATH COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT BENEFICIARIES OF ISDEE [NO. 73CV-16-382] VALENTINE APPELLANT HONORABLE THOMAS M. V. HUGHES, JUDGE

SENIOR CARE, INC., DBA SUPPLEMENTATION OF OAKDALE NURSING HOME; WHITE ADDENDUM ORDERED COUNTY MEDICAL CENTER; JOHN DOE; AND JOHN AND JANE DOES A–Z APPELLEES

PHILLIP T. WHITEAKER, Judge

Lula Valentine, individually and as personal representative of the estate of Isdee

Valentine, deceased, and on behalf of the wrongful death beneficiaries of Isdee Valentine,

appeals the order of the White County Circuit Court granting summary judgment to White

County Medical Center. However, due to a deficiency in Valentine’s brief, we decline to

reach the merits of her arguments at this time and order her to provide

a supplemental addendum.

In August 2016, Valentine filed a wrongful-death action against Senior Care, Inc.,

d/b/a Oakdale Nursing Home (“Senior Care”), John Doe, and John and Jane Does A–Z.

She subsequently amended her complaint in October 2016 to add White County Medical Center as a defendant. In August 2017, the circuit court entered an order granting summary

judgment in favor of Senior Care. That order is not in our addendum as required by our

rules.1

Arkansas Supreme Court Rule 4-2(a)(8) requires an appellant to provide an

addendum containing those documents in the record on appeal that are “essential for the

appellate court to confirm its jurisdiction.” Ark. Sup. Ct. R. 4-2(a)(8) (2019). This rule also

expressly requires that the addendum contain “any order adjudicating any claim against any

party with or without prejudice.” Ark. Sup. Ct. R. 4-2(a)(8)(A)(i). The order granting

summary judgment and dismissing Valentine’s claims against Senior Care is necessary for

this court to confirm our jurisdiction and is one of the orders specifically required by Rule

4-2(a)(8) to be included in the addendum. Accordingly, we order Valentine to file a

supplemental addendum within seven calendar days of this opinion’s date. Ark. Sup. Ct. R.

4-2(b)(4). Valentine should also take this opportunity to ensure that nothing else pertinent

to this appeal has been inadvertently omitted from her brief.

Supplementation of addendum ordered.

GLADWIN and BROWN, JJ., agree.

Willard Proctor, Jr., P.A., by: Willard Proctor, Jr., for appellant.

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard, P.L.L.C., by: Megan D. Hargraves and

Devin R. Bates, for appellee.

1 We note that there is also no order dismissing any of the John or Jane Doe defendants. However, Rule 54(b)(5) states that “[a]ny claim against a named but unserved defendant, including a ‘John Doe’ defendant, is dismissed by the circuit court’s final judgment or decree.” Ark. R. Civ. P. 54(b)(5) (2019). Because the John and Jane Doe defendants were never served, they were dismissed from the case as a matter of law, and their absence does not affect finality.