Opinion ID: 2824209
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Automatic Stay Pursuant to M.R. Civ. P. 62(e)

Text: [¶9] NOM argues that the Commission’s decision is automatically stayed pursuant to M.R. Civ. P. 62(e), which provides that, subject to several exceptions, “the taking of an appeal from a judgment shall operate as a stay of execution upon the judgment during the pendency of the appeal.” [¶10] As an initial matter, the term “judgment” is defined in the Rules as “a decree and any order from which an appeal lies.” M.R. Civ. P. 54(a); see also First NH Banks Granite State v. Scarborough, 615 A.2d 248, 251 (Me. 1992) (applying the definition in Rule 54(a) to Rule 62(e)). That definition does not case to issue an injunction after [the appellant’s] appeal had been docketed in the Law Court”). In fact, the trial court in its order on NOM’s request for a stay acknowledged the possibility that it did not have authority to act on the request. 7 include agency actions, because an appeal to the Law Court does not lie directly from the agency’s decision but instead from the Superior Court’s review of that decision.7 Additionally, the plain language of “execution upon the judgment” in M.R. Civ. P. 62(e) does not include agency actions because they are not judgments upon which an execution may issue. See M.R. Civ. P. 69. [¶11] Moreover, Rule 80C provides a clear mechanism for seeking a stay of final agency action in the Superior Court. See M.R. Civ. P. 80C(b) (stating that the procedure for stays of final agency action “shall be as provided by 5 M.R.S.[] § 11004”). Pursuant to that Rule, the applicant must first seek a stay from the agency, and only if that fails may the applicant seek a stay from the Superior Court. See 5 M.R.S. § 11004; see also Allied Res., Inc. v. Dep’t of Pub. Safety, 2010 ME 64, ¶¶ 6-8, 999 A.2d 940 (explaining that the Superior Court granted a stay of agency action pursuant to M.R. Civ. P. 80C(b) and that the Law Court granted a stay, but not discussing the possibility of an automatic stay pursuant to M.R. Civ. P. 62(e)). Section 11004 also specifically states that “[t]he filing of a petition for review shall not operate as a stay of the final agency action pending judicial review,” which precludes an automatic stay of the agency’s decision 7 Although NOM purports in one part of its motion to seek a stay of the Superior Court’s judgment, a stay of that judgment would have no effect, as it merely denied NOM’s petition for review. Instead, the substance of NOM’s motion and NOM’s prayer for relief make clear that NOM seeks a stay of the Commission’s underlying decision. 8 pursuant to M.R. Civ. P. 62(e), at least at the initial review stage. See 5 M.R.S. § 11004. It would make little sense to read Rule 62(e) to entitle a litigant to an automatic stay of agency action pending appeal in the Law Court, but not during review by the Superior Court. [¶12] We therefore conclude that Rule 62(e) does not apply to the agency action at issue in this case, and the Commission’s decision is not automatically stayed pending appeal.