Case Name: Marilyn BUSBY v. Patricia ANDERSON, Executrix of the Estate of William Burnley, Deceased
Court: Mississippi Supreme Court
Jurisdiction: Mississippi
Decision Date: 2008-04-02
Citations: 978 So. 2d 637
Docket Number: No. 2003-CT-02699-SCT
Parties: Marilyn BUSBY v. Patricia ANDERSON, Executrix of the Estate of William Burnley, Deceased.
Judges: WALLER, P.J., CARLSON, DICKINSON, RANDOLPH AND LAMAR, JJ., CONCUR. DIAZ, P.J., DISSENTS WITH SEPARATE WRITTEN OPINION JOINED BY GRAVES, J., AND JOINED IN PART BY EASLEY, J.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 978
Pages: 637–642

Head Matter:
Marilyn BUSBY v. Patricia ANDERSON, Executrix of the Estate of William Burnley, Deceased.
No. 2003-CT-02699-SCT.
Supreme Court of Mississippi.
April 2, 2008.
Richard L. Kimmel, Charles Cameron Auerswald, Greenwood, attorneys for appellant.
Roy A. Smith, Jr., Tara Strickland Clifford, Jackson, attorneys for Appellee.

Opinion:
ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI
SMITH, Chief Justice, for the Court.
¶ 1. Marilyn Busby (Marilyn) sued William Burnley (William) in the Washington County Circuit Court, alleging that William's negligence caused an accident resulting in injuries and damages to Marilyn. A jury trial resulted in a verdict in favor of William. Marilyn appealed to this Court, and we assigned the case to the Court of Appeals, which reversed and remanded for a new trial. William is now deceased, but his estate (the Estate) seeks review by this Court. Because we find that the notice of appeal was not timely filed, the Court of Appeals lacked jurisdiction; therefore we reverse the Court of Appeals and dismiss this appeal, reinstating the final judgment of the Washington County Circuit Court.
FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
¶ 2. Marilyn sued William in the Washington County Circuit Court incident to a single vehicle car accident. Marilyn was a passenger in William's car when it left the road and crashed into a ditch on January 18, 1993. Marilyn claimed William drove his car in a negligent manner and caused her to suffer injuries. William denied that he was negligent. The dispute went to trial on March 30-31, 2000, with the jury returning a verdict for William.
¶ 3. On April 27, 2000, Marilyn filed a post-judgment motion, by which she sought to: (a) renew her request for peremptory instruction/judgment as a matter of law; (b) set aside the jury verdict and vacate judgment; (c) for judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV), or alternatively; (d) a new trial; or (e) to alter or amend the judgment for additur. William responded to the post-judgment motion on May 23, 2000, and a hearing was held on August 24, 2000. The trial court did not rule on the motion until August 13, 2003, almost three years after the hearing, when it overruled Marilyn's motion. The trial court's order was not filed until August 21, 2003.
¶ 4. On September 15, 2003, Marilyn filed a motion for an extension of time to file a notice of appeal. The motion alleged that Marilyn did not have knowledge of the trial court's ruling until September 8, 2003. No hearing was held on the motion nor did an order denying or granting the motion appear in the record until after the time for filing had expired. Marilyn filed her notice of appeal on October 20, 2003.
¶ 5. The case was assigned to the Court of Appeals, where the Estate contested the jurisdiction of the Court arguing that Marilyn's appeal was untimely. Acknowledging that Marilyn's appeal fell outside the thirty-day window, the Court of Appeals identified in the record Marilyn's unresolved motion for an extension of time. The Court of Appeals then notified the circuit court of the unresolved motion and gave the circuit court an opportunity to either grant or deny the motion. The circuit court granted Marilyn's motion, and the Court of Appeals then asserted its jurisdiction and considered the merits of the appeal, ultimately reversing the trial court and remanding the case for a new trial. The Estate now seeks review by this Court.
LEGAL ANALYSIS
¶ 6. This Court need address only one issue. Timely filing of a notice of appeal is jurisdictional. Miss. Dep't of Mental Health v. Hall, 936 So.2d 917, 929 (Miss.2006). Jurisdiction is a question of law which this Court reviews de novo. RAS Family Partners, LP v. Onman Biloxi, LLC, 968 So.2d 926 (Miss.2007).
¶ 7. Mississippi Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(a) requires the notice of appeal to be filed with the clerk of the trial court within thirty days after the date of entry of the judgment or order being appealed. M.R.A.P. 4(a). Rule 4(g) allows the trial court to extend the time for filing a notice of appeal upon a timely motion, where good cause is shown. M.R.A.P. 4(g). The trial court may grant a party an additional thirty days in which to file his or her notice of appeal. M.R.A.P. 4(g) and cmt. (2007).
¶ 8. Marilyn's motion for an extension of time to file a notice of appeal was timely filed, within thirty days of the date of entry of the judgment. Marilyn's motion argued that an extension was warranted because of the delay in her learning of the adverse judgment. The comment to Rule 4 states, "Mere failure to learn of entry of the judgment is generally not a ground for showing excusable neglect. Counsel in a case taken under advisement has a duty to check the docket regularly." M.R.A.P. 4 cmt.
¶ 9. Marilyn's notice of appeal was filed on the sixtieth day and could have been timely under the rules had the trial court granted her motion and granted the maximum amount of additional time allowed. However, the circuit court did not rule on Marilyn's motion until prompted by the Court of Appeals.
¶ 10. This Court has suspended Rule 4 on rare occasions where warranted. However, the facts of the present case do not warrant such action. This case has been pending in the Mississippi judicial system for more than thirteen years, since Marilyn filed her complaint on June 3, 1994. In 2000, a jury returned a verdict for William. Upon the circuit court's entry of judgment, denying Marilyn's post-judgment motions, Marilyn had thirty days in which to file a notice of appeal. Marilyn stated that she received notice of the adverse judgment on September 8. At that time Marilyn had thirteen days in which to file a notice of appeal, yet she failed to do so. While Marilyn timely filed a motion for an extension of time to file a notice of appeal, the circuit court neither granted nor denied this motion, until prompted by the Court of Appeals.
¶ 11. Marilyn had a duty to diligently pursue her claim, yet she failed to seek a writ of mandamus as provided by Rule 15, following the circuit court's delay in ruling on her post-judgment motions. Next, Marilyn failed to file her notice of appeal within the thirty-day period prescribed by Rule 4(a). Finally, Marilyn failed to timely follow up on her motion for an extension of time to file a notice of appeal. The present litigation has been pending in the Mississippi judicial system for more than thirteen years. During that time, the De fendant, Wilbam, has passed away, leaving his Estate to defend in his stead. These facts do not warrant suspension of Rule 4(a).
CONCLUSION
¶ 12. Marilyn failed to timely file her direct appeal; therefore the Court of Appeals did not have jurisdiction to rule on the merits of the case. We therefore reverse the Court of Appeals and dismiss the present appeal for want of jurisdiction.
¶ 13. THE JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF APPEALS IS REVERSED AND THIS APPEAL IS DISMISSED.
WALLER, P.J., CARLSON, DICKINSON, RANDOLPH AND LAMAR, JJ., CONCUR. DIAZ, P.J., DISSENTS WITH SEPARATE WRITTEN OPINION JOINED BY GRAVES, J., AND JOINED IN PART BY EASLEY, J.
. The dissent's focus on the trial court's ruling is misplaced. The majority correctly considers whether the Mississippi Court of Appeals acted within its jurisdiction when it requested that the trial court rule on Busby's expired motion for an extension of time.
. The dissent points out the obvious, that the "for good cause shown" standard is something less than the "excusable neglect" standard. However, whether or not Busby's actions would have met the lower standard had the trial court ruled on her motion before its expiration is not the question before this Court. The majority maintains that the circumstances of this case fall below what is necessary to suspend Rule 4 and that, therefore, the Mississippi Court of Appeals' actions were not warranted.