Case Title: Leslie v. Estate of Tavares

Citation: 

Docket Number: 

State: hawaii

Court: Hawaii Supreme Court

Date: 2007-06-25T00:00:00Z

Document:
LAW LIBRARY

No. 28273
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF HAWAT'T
—
HOWARD K. LESLIE, JR., Petitioner-Plaintiff-appellant,
and

LBIMOMI LESLIE PRESCH, individually, and as next friend for
and HOWARD K. LESLIE, §R.,

   
  

HOWARD E, LESLIE, JR.
Respondents-Piaintiffs-appeilees, E}

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‘THE ESTATE OF JAMIE K. TAVARES, Deceased;"/¢ OF =
Respondent Defendant Appellee, FS om
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JOHN DOES 1-10, JANE DOES 1-10, DOE PARTNERSHIPS {10;
CORPORATIONS 1-10; and DOE ENTITIES 1-10, Defendants

 

STATE OF HAWAI'I, DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES,
Respondent-Lien Holder-Appellee,

and

JOSEPH L. WILDMAN and SIBILLA & WILDMAN, Intervenors-Appellees.

SSS
CIV, NO. 98-5468
MEGAN LESLIE and MALYSSA LESLIE, minor:

HOWARD K. LESLIE, JR.,
through their Guardian Ad Litem MARLENE L. ANDUHA, Plaintiffs,

JEFFREY K. KANUI, personal representative of THE ESTATE OF
JAMIE K. TAVARES, Defendant,

and

JOHN DOES 1-10, JANE DOES 1-10, DOE PARTNERSHIPS 1-10; DOE
CORPORATIONS 1-10; and DOE ENTITIES 1-10, Defendants.

SS

 
 

UBFFERY K. KANUI, personal representative of THE ESTATE OF
JAMIE K. TAVARES, Third-Party Plaintiff,

 

UBIMOMI L. PRESCH and HOWARD K. LESLIE, SR.,
‘Third-Party Defendants.

 

CERTIORARI TO THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS
(CIV. NOS. 97-0448 and 98-5468)

ORDER ACCEPTING APPLICATION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI,
VACATING ORDER DISMISSING APPEAL AND

REMANDING APPEAL TO THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS
(gy: Moon, C.J., Levinson, Nakayama, Acoba, and Duffy, JJ.)
Petitioner-plaintiff-appellant Howard Leslie, Jr.

applies for a writ of certiorari to review the Intermediate Court

 

of Appeals’ Pebruazy 12, 2007 order dismissing his appeal for
lack of appellate jurisdiction and the March 2, 2007 order
denying reconsideration thereof. The Intermediate Court of
Appeals determined that the August 22, 2001 order affirming the
apportionment of the settlement proceeds in Civ. No. 97-0448,
certified as final pursuant to Hawai'i Rules of Civil Procedure
(HRP) Rule 54(b) on October 11, 2006, is not appealable because
the order was not reduced to a separate certified judgment
pursvant to HRCP Rule 58. However, the suprene court determined
in Leslie v, Estate of Tavares, 109 Hawai'i 8, 12, 122 P.34 803,
807 (2005), that the August 22, 2001 order would be a “final
order” appealable pursuant to Hawai'i Revised Statues (HRS)

§ 643-1(a) (Supp. 2006) upon the circuit court‘s designation of

the order as final pursuant to HRCP Rule Sé(b). The supreme
court's determination is the law of the case. See Thompson v
AIG Hawaii Ins. Co., Inc., 111 Hawai'i 413, 423 n.14, 142 P.3d
277, 287 n.14 (2006) (*[A] determination of a question of law
made by an appellate court in the course of an action becomes the
lew of the case and may not be disputed by a reopening of the
question at a later stage of the litigation." (citation
comitted.)). The August 22, 2001 order, certified as final
pursuant to HRCP Rule $4(b) on October 11, 2006, is an appealable
final order, and the Intermediate Court of Appeals has
jurisdiction to review the order. See HRS § 641-1(a).
Therefore,

I? 18 HEREBY ORDERED that the application for a writ of
ertiorari is accepted.

YT 18 FURTHER ORDERED that: (1) the February 12, 2007
order of the Intermediate Court of Appeals dismissing No. 26273
for lack of appellate jurisdiction and the March 2, 2007 order
denying reconsideration thereof are vacated; and (2) No. 26273 is
remanded to the Intermediate Court of Appeals for disposition on
the merits.

DATED: Honolulu, Hawai'i, June 25, 2007.

 

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