IN THE SUPREME COURT OF MISSISSIPPI

NO. 2017-IA-01558-SCT

LIBERTY

MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY

v.
STATE OF MISSISSIPPI EX REL. JIM HOOD

DATE OF JUDGMENT: 10/24/2017 TRIAL JUDGE: HON. TOMIE T. GREEN TRIAL COURT ATTORNEYS: CECIL MAISON HEIDELBERG GEORGE W . NEVILLE BENJAMIN GILBERT BRYANT LUCIEN SMITH W I LLIAM E. COPLEY W I LLIAM L. SMITH JACQUELINE H. RAY CRYMES G. PITTMAN CLIFFORD KAVANAUGH BAILEY, III GREGG A. CARAW AY MARY JO W O ODS GEOFFREY C. MORGAN AUGUST J. MATTEIS, JR. MATTHEW S. KRAUSS SEAN J. W ILLIAMS COURT FROM W HICH APPEALED: CIRCUIT COURT OF THE FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT OF HINDS COUNTY ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANT: GREGG A. CARAW AY CLIFFORD KAVANAUGH BAILEY, III JUDY Y. BARRASSO STEPHEN L. MILES CHLOE M. CHETTAATTORNEYS FOR APPELLEE: GEORGE W . NEVILLE DONALD L. KILGORE JACQUELINE H. RAY W I LLIAM L. SMITH W

. LUCIEN SMITH BENJAMIN GILBERT BRYANT CRYMES G. PITTMAN W I LLIAM E. COPLEY CECIL MAISON HEIDELBERG NATURE OF THE CASE: CIVIL - INSURANCE DISPOSITION: VACATED AND REMANDED - 08/22/2019 MOTION FOR REHEARING FILED: MANDATE ISSUED:

EN BANC.

MAX WELL, JUSTICE, FOR THE COURT: ¶1. This is a s ister appeal to Safeco Insurance Com pany of Am e r ica v. State , No. 2017-

IA-01554-SCT (Miss. Aug. 22, 2019) ( Safeco ). 1 But unlike Safeco , there is no i ssue of case reassignm ent f

rom one judge’s d o cket t o a nother. The only i ssue in this appeal is t h e trial court’s appointm e nt of

a special m aster. ¶2. The o rder appointing the special m aster to the case against Liberty Mutual I nsurance
Com pany is alm ost verbatim to the appointm ent order in Safeco

. Thus, this order also f alls

o utside the d iscretionary bounds of Mississippi Rule of Civil Procedure 53. For th e s a me

reasons articulated in Safeco , we v acate the o rder a ppointing the special m aster and rem and
this case f

or f urther proceedings consistent with this opinion. ¶3. Liberty Mutual also asks this Court to appoint a special judge to preside o ver this case.

1 T h is ap p eal p rev io u s ly h ad b e en co n so lid ated w ith t w o o th er ap p eals— S a feco , N o

. 2 0 1 7 -IA -0 1 5 5 4 -S C T , an d V in o d K h o sla et a l. v. S

ta te , N o

. 2 0 1 7 -IA -0 1 6 3 7 -S C T ( M i s s. A u g

. 2 2 , 2 0 1 9 ) ( C

a n n o n ). B u t b y sep ara t e o r d e r , th e th ree ap p eals h a v e b een d eco n so lid ated

. 2But a m ajority of this Court does not f ind the record bef

ore us suf f i c i e n t f o r t h i s Court to
invoke Mississippi Code Section 9-1-105(2) (Rev. 2014) in t his case. On rem and, if Judge

Green is convinced additional judi c i a l resources are necessary , Section 9-1-105(2) 2

authorizes her to request the Chief Justice appoint a special judge to preside in this case or to assist the Hinds County Circuit Court in the prom p t adm inistration of

justice. ¶4. VACATED AND REMANDED.

R A N D O L P H , C
. J
. , C O L E M A N , B E A M , C H A M B E R L I N , I S H E E A N D GRIFFIS, JJ., CONCUR. KING, P.J., DISSENTS WITH SEPARATE W RITTEN OPINION JOINED BY KITCHENS, P.J. KING, PRESIDING JUSTICE, DISSENTING: ¶5. For the reasons stated in the dissenting portion o f m y opinion in Safeco Insurance Co. of Am e rica v. State , No. 2 0 17-IA-01554-SCT (Miss. Aug. 22, 2019), I r espectf ully dissent.
KITCHENS, P.J., JOINS THIS OPINION.

2 Subsection (2) of

Section 9-1-105 reads as f ollows: Upon the request o f the Chief Judge of the C ourt of Appeals, the senior judge of a c hancery or c ircuit court d istrict , t h e senior judge of a county court, or upon his o w n m otion, the Chief Justice o f the Mississippi Suprem e C ourt, with the advice and consent o f a m ajority of the justices of t he M ississippi S uprem e Court, shall have the authority to a p p o i n t a s pecial judge t o serve on a tem porary b a s is in a circuit, chancery or c o unty court i n the event o f an em ergency or overcrowded docket. It shall b e the duty of any special judge so appointed to assist the court t o w h ich he is assigned in the disposition of
causes so pending in such court f or whatever period of

tim e is designated by the Chief Justice. The Chief Justice, in his discretion, m ay appoint the special judge to h ear particular cases, a particular ty pe of c ase, or a particular p ortion of the court’s docket. Miss. Code Ann. § 9-1-105(2).
3