Title: Robert Harrold Kinkead v. Carol and Kinkead Spillers and Jeannine Lea Kinkead Mathis

State: arkansas

Issuer: Arkansas Supreme Court

Document:

Robert Harold KINKEAD and Joyce Kinkead v.
Carol and Kinkead SPILLERS and Jeannine Lea
Kinkead Mathis, Hon. Ellen Brantley, Fifth
Division Chancery Court of Pulaski County,
Arkansas

97-1302                                            ___ S.W.2d ___

                    Supreme Court of Arkansas
               Opinion delivered December 4, 1997


Mandamus -- writ of mandamus granted -- chancery court ordered to
     enter final order specifically describing resolution of
     intervenor's lien. -- Where a judgment lien in favor of the 
     intervenor bank was satisfied after the entry of the
     chancellor's September 10, 1996 order approving the
     commissioner's deed, but an order describing the resolution of
     the intervenor bank's judgment lien was never entered, the
     supreme court, in order to allow petitioners to perfect their
     appeal, granted a petition for a writ of mandamus; the
     chancellor was directed to enter a final order incorporating
     her order entered on September 10, 1996, and describing the
     resolution of the intervenor's judgment-lien claim.


     Petition for Writ of Mandamus; granted.
     Joyce Kinkead, for petitioners.
     No response.

     Per Curiam. 
     Petitioners Robert Harrold Kinkead and Joyce Kinkead petition
this court for a writ of mandamus to Chancellor Ellen B. Brantley,
Fifth Division Chancery Court of Pulaski County, directing that she
enter a final order in this matter.  We grant the writ.
     On March 17, 1997, this court handed down an opinion in this
matter in which we dismissed the appeal of the Kinkeads without
prejudice for failure to appeal from a final order.  See Kinkead v.
Spillers, 327 Ark. 552, 940 S.W.2d 437 (1997).  In our opinion, we
made specific mention of a judgment lien in favor of intervenor
Boatmen's National Bank of Arkansas, which, according to the record
before us, had not been resolved with regard to the proceeds
derived from the sale of the land at issue.  We specifically stated
that the Boatmen's claim was not merely collateral to the Kinkeads'
claim.
     According to the record before this court filed in conjunction
with the Kinkeads' petition for a writ of mandamus, after the
chancellor's order entered on September 10, 1996, which approved
the commissioner's deed in this matter, the lien of Boatmen's was
satisfied.  On October 9, 1996, the chancellor of the Second
Division Chancery Court of Pulaski County entered an order
releasing funds received from the sale of the land and held by the
Chancery Clerk to Boatmen's, and the bank subsequently released its
judgment lien against the land.
     Following this court's opinion on March 17, 1997, the Kinkeads
moved Chancellor Brantley for entry of a final judgment from which
they could appeal.  By letter opinion dated June 3, 1997, and by
order entered August 19, 1997, Chancellor Brantley made it clear
that she disagreed with the opinion of this court.  The chancellor
stated in her order:
     The Supreme Court found that the Defendants' appeal was
     premature as not having been made from a final order, as
     asserted by Intervenor.  However, the parties' briefs
     apparently did not sufficiently impress upon the Supreme
     Court that a final order (the order of September 10,
     1996), had been entered but after the order appealed from
     and that the matter of Intervenor's lien had been fully
     addressed therein.  Therefore, this Court having already
     entered a final order which was not appealed from, there
     is nothing more required of this Court.  (Emphasis in the
     original order.)
In her specific order, she stated: "The Court finds no need to make
any further orders in this case."
     Without a final order, the Kinkeads are unable to perfect
their appeal.  The Fifth Division Chancery Court is directed to
enter a final order forthwith incorporating her order of September
10, 1996, and describing the resolution of intervenor Boatmen
Bank's judgment-lien claim.
     Writ granted.