Case Title: Wright v. DCSE, et al.

Citation: 

Docket Number: 313, 2009

State: delaware

Court: Delaware Supreme Court

Date: 2009-06-29T00:00:00Z

Document:
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE 
 
ERRICK M. WRIGHT,   
 
Respondent Below- 
Appellant, 
 
v. 
 
DCSE et al., 
 
Petitioners Below- 
Appellees. 
§ 
§  No. 313, 2009 
§ 
§ 
§  Court Below─Family Court 
§  of the State of Delaware 
§  in and for New Castle County 
§  File No. 0705010433 
§  CPI No. 07-05911 
§ 
§ 
 
 
 
 
 
Submitted: June 24, 2009 
 
 
 
 
   Decided: June 29, 2009 
 
Before STEELE, Chief Justice, JACOBS and RIDGELY, Justices. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
O R D E R  
 
 
This 29th day of June 2009, it appears to the Court that: 
 
(1) 
The appellant has filed a notice of appeal from a decision of a 
Family Court Commissioner dated April 29, 2009.  The Clerk of the Court 
issued a notice to show cause why the appeal should not be dismissed for 
this Court’s lack of jurisdiction to consider an appeal directly from a 
decision of a Family Court Commissioner.  The appellant filed a response to 
the notice to show cause on June 24, 2009.  In the response, the appellant 
argues that Del. Code Ann. tit. 10, § 1051 grants this Court jurisdiction to 
hear the instant appeal. 
 
2 
 
(2) 
A Commissioner’s decision is not a final judgment for purposes 
of appeal to this Court.1  A party’s right of review from a Commissioner’s 
decision shall be to a judge of the Family Court.2  Accordingly, this Court 
lacks jurisdiction to consider the instant appeal in the first instance and it, 
therefore, must be dismissed.3     
 
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS ORDERED that this appeal is 
DISMISSED. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
BY THE COURT: 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
/s/ Henry duPont Ridgely 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Justice 
 
                                                 
1 Redden v. McGill, 549 A.2d 695, 697-98 (Del. 1988). 
2 Del. Code Ann. tit. 10, § 915(d). 
3 While Del. Code Ann. tit. 10, § 1051 addresses this Court’s general appellate 
jurisdiction, it does not confer jurisdiction upon this Court to hear an appeal directly from 
the decision of a Family Court Commissioner.