Opinion ID: 1776784
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: whether the trial court erred in dismissing gamble's claim for fraud, bad faith and breach of fiduciary duties.

Text: ¶ 11. This Court has not addressed this issue in any previous cases. Gamble argues that when parties are involved in mediation, the opposing party has a duty to act in good faith in seeking and participating in mediation. The opposing party, according to Gamble, must not use mediation as a tactic to delay trial or to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition. ¶ 12. The elements of fraud are: (1) a representation; (2) its falsity; (3) its materiality; (4) the speaker's knowledge of its falsity or ignorance of its truth; (5) the speakers intent that the representation be acted upon by the hearer and in the manner reasonably contemplated; (6) the hearer's ignorance of its falsity; (7) the hearer's reliance on the representation's truth; (8) the hearer's right to rely thereon; and, (9) the hearer's consequent and proximate damages. Allen v. Mac Tools, Inc., 671 So.2d 636, 642 (Miss.1996). Gamble argues that Dollar General's concealment of relevant insurance coverage rises to the level of misrepresentation and concealment that would entitle Gamble to a cause of action based on fraud. Gamble alleges that the misrepresentation by Dollar General has caused detriment to Gamble in the form of four hours of wasted time, the loss of an opportunity for a successful mediation, additional stress and an unfair opportunity for Dollar General to measure the strengths and weaknesses of Gamble's case at mediation. Gamble also argues that because Dollar General did not file a response to her amended complaint, by rule, Gamble's amended allegation should have been recognized as admitted. ¶ 13. On the other hand, Dollar General argues that under M.R.C.P. 12(b), Dollar General had the option of either filing an answer to the amended claims or filing a motion to dismiss. Dollar General argues that Gamble's cause of action lacks any reasonable basis in law and is entirely without merit. Dollar General filed a motion for Rule 11 sanctions against Gamble for filing a frivolous cause of action. M.R.C.P. 11. The circuit court denied Dollar General's motion for sanctions. Dollar General instead asks that this Court sanction Gamble for her conduct and for raising a frivolous appeal. ¶ 14. This Court affirms the dismissal of Gamble's claim for fraud. Other than her reference to the general law on fraud, Gamble has presented no meaningful arguments and no legal support for a civil claim with regard to misrepresentations in discovery. The proper course of action for Gamble would have been to seek recourse under the discovery rules themselves. Recourse for violations of discovery rules is set forth in the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure. See M.R.C.P. 37.