Opinion ID: 1148137
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: reduction of judgment

Text: Ward argues the circuit judge erred following final judgment in amending the judgment so as to allow credit for sums already paid her by Foster. Several months prior to trial Foster moved the court to amend her pleadings to plead credit for payments Allstate had paid on her claim. The motion to allow such amendment, together with a post-trial hearing to determine the amount, was sustained at the beginning of trial. A jury verdict for $3,500 was rendered May 28, 1985, and judgment entered thereon. On June 7 Ward moved for a new trial on damages only, denied by court order dated June 21. On that same date a notice of appeal was filed. On June 27 following Foster filed a motion for relief from judgment on the amount paid. Following a hearing on the motion, at which time Ward argued the circuit court had lost jurisdiction because a notice of appeal and appeal bond had been filed, the court sustained the motion, after first ascertaining the appeal record had not been transmitted to this Court. The court granted relief from the judgment by order dated October 31, 1985, crediting the former judgment of $3,500 with $1,691.50, thus rendering final judgment in the amount of $1,808.50. The circuit court's order was based upon MRCP 60(b)(5), which reads in pertinent part: Rule 60(b): Mistakes; inadvertence; newly-discovered evidence; fraud, etc. On a motion and upon such terms as are just, the court may relieve a party or his legal representative from a final judgment, order, or proceeding for the following reasons:       (5) the judgment has been satisfied, released or. .. .       Leave to make the motion need not be obtained from the appellate court unless the record has been transmitted to the appellate court and the action remains pending therein. The circuit judge clearly had authority to correct his judgment under Rule 60(b)(5), and committed no error in doing so. Prior to the enactment of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure, the perfection of an appeal deprived the trial court of authority to correct judgments. Gatlin v. Cook, 380 So.2d 236 (Miss. 1980); Crocker v. Farmers & Merchants Bank, et al., 293 So.2d 444 (Miss. 1974). The adoption of the Rules of Civil Procedure, however, gave trial courts the authority in certain specified circumstances to correct judgments even though an appeal has been perfected. Brinnon v. Wilson, 485 So.2d 301 (Miss. 1986), held otherwise, and we now recognize our holding in that case to be a misapprehension of the Rule. Therefore, Brinnon v. Wilson is expressly overruled. We have carefully examined all remaining assignments of error, and find them to be without merit. There being no reversible error, the judgment of the circuit court is affirmed. AFFIRMED. ROY NOBLE LEE, C.J., and PRATHER, ROBERTSON, SULLIVAN, ANDERSON, GRIFFIN and ZUCCARO, JJ., concur. DAN M. LEE, P.J., dissents without written opinion.