BAC Home Loans Servicing, L.P., f/k/a Countrywide Home Loans Servicing v. Wedereit

Summary

The Supreme Court of Georgia held that the trial court improperly granted sua sponte partial summary judgment to the plaintiff on a breach of contract claim. Although the defendant's motion placed the relevant notice-compliance issue before the court, the plaintiff had not carried the separate burden of proving entitlement to judgment as a matter of law. The court reversed the Court of Appeals and the sua sponte summary judgment ruling.

Holdings

1. A court may grant summary judgment sua sponte to a nonmoving party only under limited circumstances: the issues must be identical to those raised in the movant's motion, the record must support the judgment, and the opposing party must receive full and fair notice and an opportunity to respond.
2. The trial court erred by granting Wedereit sua sponte summary judgment because the record did not establish that he had carried his burden of proving every element of his breach-of-contract claim.

Questions Presented

1. Whether a court may grant summary judgment sua sponte to a nonmoving party when the issues involved are identical to those raised in the opposing party's summary-judgment motion.
2. Whether the trial court properly granted Wedereit sua sponte summary judgment when Wedereit had not submitted evidence establishing every element of his breach-of-contract claim.

Disposition

reversed