Opinion ID: 2275677
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Motion to strike Commission's brief

Text: Before we address the merits of the appeal, we consider appellee Desha County's pending motion to strike the Commission's brief on the grounds that (1) the Commission is not a party to the action, (2) its brief, styled as an appellee's brief, actually supports the appellant's position, and (3) the Commission failed to file a notice of appeal or cross-appeal. We find merit in appellee's arguments, and we strike the Commission's brief as untimely. In a remarkably similar case, Boyle v. A.W.A., Inc., 319 Ark. 390, 892 S.W.2d 242, we struck a brief where the appellee filed a timely notice of cross-appeal but then filed a brief supporting the appellant's position rather than the appellee's. We acknowledged that: In reading Wagner's brief on appeal, however, it is clear that far from assuming the posture of appellee or contesting any decision in favor of his brother, appellant Boyle, he associates himself with the arguments made by the appellant Boyle. He, thus, occupies the status of an appellant irrespective of how he styled himself in either his notice of appeal or on the cover of his brief. He failed to file his brief in timely fashion as an appellant but filed his brief on the same date that A.W.A.'s brief as the appellee was recorded. A.W.A., as a consequence, had no opportunity to respond to Wagner's arguments. This was inherently unfair to A.W.A., especially when Wagner was embracing the same positions as the appellant. We conclude that Wagner's brief was not timely filed, and we strike it. Boyle, 319 Ark. at 393, 892 S.W.2d at 244. Like Wagner, the Commission styled itself an appellee and filed its brief on January 6, 2000, the same day that Desha County filed its responsive brief. Similarly, like the appellee in Boyle , Desha County had no opportunity to respond to the Commission's arguments, which mirrored the appellant's. We also noted in Boyle that when an appellee seeks something more than was received in the trial court, he must file a notice of cross-appeal within ten days of the first notice of appeal or within thirty days from the date of the challenged order. Boyle, 319 Ark. at 392-93, 892 S.W.2d at 244; see also Flemings v. Littles, 324 Ark. 112, 918 S.W.2d 718 (1996) (treating document styled notice of appeal as notice of cross-appeal). Although Wagner timely filed a notice of cross-appeal, we nevertheless struck his brief as untimely because he was not a true cross-appellant. See Boyle, 319 Ark. at 391, 892 S.W.2d at 243. Wagner aligned himself with the appellant's position but waited until the appellees' briefs were due to file his own. Here, the Commission failed to file either a notice of appeal or cross-appeal and yet filed a brief advancing the appellant's arguments too late to give the remaining appellees an opportunity to respond. In light of Boyle , we hold that the Commission's brief is untimely, and we strike it. Consequently, we also strike the Commission's oral argument.