Court Opinion

ID: 9539344
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 16:02:39.835529+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:58:44.227774
License: Public Domain

*349On Petition for Rehearing.
Upon petition for rehearing, relator contends that a companion case wherein Chief of Police John Fred is the relator was heard by the district court and a writ of mandate issued therein; that such companion case was appealed and argued and briefed by both parties, and that this court has overlooked such appeal in its opinion herein. This opinion covered an appeal from a peremptory writ oO mandate entered in a case involving Don J. Raw, as relator, and it is true that testimony was taken covering several companion eases at the same trial, and counsel stipulated that in order to avoid a separate trial of all the causes, the testimony and evidence given therein might be considered as though given in separate trials of each of said applications. The record discloses that at the conclusion of the hearing this eoloquy between counsel and the court occurred:
“Judge Loble: Can it be agreed that Judge Fall and I will decide the case of Don Raw and that the other cases will be held in abeyance until such time as either our decision is final or the Supreme Court passes on it?
“Counsel: That’s agreeable.
“Judge Loble: May it also be agreed that although the other eases are all submitted under this stipulation, that the Court will on application of either party re-open the other cases for the purpose of hearing further testimony, should either our decision or that of the Supreme Court be such that you find it necessary to offer additional testimony; something might come up like that.
“Counsel: That’s agreeable.
“Judge Loble: So you are not foreclosed in the other cases. With that, the cases will be deemed submitted upon receipt of the briefs required to be filed herein.”
This would indicate that no final order was ever made in the case involving John Fred or any other relator, and none *350appears in the record before us, nor any notice of appeal therefrom.
This court has held that there must be a final judgment from which an appeal may be taken before we are vested with jurisdiction to make a determination. See Ringling v. Biering, 83 Mont. 391, 272 P. 688; Heater v. Boston & Montana Corp., 84 Mont. 500, 277 P. 11; Corcoran v. Fousek, 125 Mont. 223, 233 P.2d 1040; Turnbull v. Brown, 126 Mont. 548, 254 P.2d 1085.
While counsel have attempted in this cause to have this court render an opinion affecting other law suits, certainly we have no jurisdiction to do so,' and it was clearly the intention of the district judges that when the instant Raw case opinion came down the other causes would be re-opened, if necessary, and then final decisions would be made. So far as the record before us is concerned, there is no final decision of any kind in the Fred case or any other case except that of Raw.
As to the other contentions made by relator in his petition for rehearing we deem them without merit.
The petition for rehearing is denied.
MR. CHIEF JUSTICE HARRISON and MR. JUSTICES ADAIR, CASTLES and DOYLE concur.