Meeks v. Morrow

Summary

The Alabama Supreme Court held that the trial court improperly certified a partial summary judgment as final under Rule 54(b), Ala. R. Civ. P. The remaining counterclaims and cross-claims were closely intertwined with the claims decided below, creating an unreasonable risk of inconsistent results. The court therefore dismissed the appeal as taken from a nonfinal judgment and substituted this opinion for its December 20, 2013, opinion.

Holdings

1. The trial court exceeded its discretion in certifying the partial summary judgment as final under Rule 54(b) because the adjudicated claims and the remaining claims were so closely intertwined that separate adjudication created an unreasonable risk of inconsistent results.
2. An appeal from an order that is not a final judgment must be dismissed ex mero motu.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the trial court properly certified its partial summary judgment as a final judgment under Rule 54(b), Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure.
2. Whether the Supreme Court had jurisdiction over an appeal from an order leaving interdependent counterclaims and cross-claims unresolved.

Disposition

dismissed