MAIN , Justice . I. Facts and Procedural History This is the second time these parties have been before us. The underlying facts are as follows. B.O.S. ("the husband") and E.S. ("the wife") began residing together in 2005. Their union produced a daughter, B.T.S. ("the child"), in August 2006. The couple married in March 2007. The husband, the wife, and the child lived in a residence next door to the residence of the child's paternal grandfather, O.S. ("the grandfather"), and his wife,...
STUART , Justice . Riverstone Development Co., Inc. ("Riverstone Development"), sued Garrett & Associates Appraisals, Inc. ("G & A Appraisals"), in the Madison Circuit Court, asserting negligence, wantonness, and conspiracy claims stemming from a July 2010 appraisal G & A Appraisals conducted on waterfront property Riverstone Development owned on Lake Guntersville. During the course of the eventual trial on those claims, the trial court entered a judgment as a matter of law in favor of G &...
PARKER , Justice . Barbara Johnson appeals the judgment of the Mobile Circuit Court in favor of the City of Mobile ("the City"), the circuit court's denial of Johnson's motions for a continuance and a new trial, and the award of attorney fees to the City. I. Facts and Procedural History This case involves Johnson's claim against the City alleging retaliation based on Johnson's several complaints and lawsuits filed against the City under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C....
BOLIN , Justice . Dothan/Houston County Communications District and Ozark/Dale County E-911, Inc. ("the districts"), sued Century Tel of Alabama, LLC ("CTA"), and Qwest Communications Company, LLC ("Qwest") (hereinafter collectively referred to as "the defendants"), seeking, among other things, to recover E-911 charges that the defendants were alleged to have not properly billed and collected in accordance with the Emergency Telephone Service Act, 11-98-1 et seq., Ala.Code 1975 ("the ETSA"...
BOLIN , Justice . John R. Cooper, in his official capacity as director of the Alabama Department of Transportation ("ALDOT"), appeals from the Montgomery Circuit Court's December 16, 2014, order enjoining him from prohibiting Eddie Ziegler, Lisa Ziegler Player, Jennifer Ziegler Cousins, Angela Gay Ziegler Bracknell, and Cathy Donaldson (hereinafter sometimes referred to collectively as "the Zieglers"), from obtaining legal permits to build seven to eight houses on the Zieglers' property or...
MOORE , Chief Justice . The State of Alabama, on behalf of Rick Allison, Probate Judge of Walker County, appeals from a judgment of the Walker Circuit Court in favor of Jill Farris, the county administrator for Walker County. By statute, Judge Allison, as the chief elections officer for Walker County, see 17-1-3(b), Ala.Code 1975, must publish certain voter lists and election notices (the lists and the notices are hereinafter referred to as collectively "the notices"). 17-4-1, 17-8-2,...
PARKER , Justice . 1 PETITION DENIED. NO OPINION. STUART, BOLIN, SHAW, MAIN, WISE, and BRYAN, JJ., concur. PARKER, J., concurs specially. MOORE, C.J., and MURDOCK, J., dissent. PARKER , Justice (concurring specially). I agree with this Court's decision to deny the petition for a writ of mandamus filed by Cornell L. Tatum, Sr., Charlie Hardy, and Charles Lancaster ("the petitioners"). I write specially to emphasize that a circuit court lacks subject-matter jurisdiction to apply...
WISE , Justice . Brian Barze, the plaintiff below, filed a petition for a writ of mandamus requesting that this Court direct the Jefferson Circuit Court to set aside its July 23, 2014, order sealing a motion to stay filed by James S. Holbrook, Jr., one of the defendants below. We grant the petition and issue the writ. Facts and Procedural History On March 1, 2013, Barze filed in the Jefferson Circuit Court an action against Sterne Agee Group, Inc., and Holbrook, the then CEO of Sterne...
BRYAN , Justice . The Retirement Systems of Alabama ("RSA"), the Teachers' Retirement System of Alabama ("TRS"), the Public Education Employees' Health Insurance Plan ("PEEHIP"), the Public Education Employees' Health Insurance Fund ("PEEHIF"), the Board of Control of TRS ("the TRS Board"), the Board of Control of PEEHIP ("the PEEHIP Board"), David G. Bronner, as chief executive officer of RSA and as secretary-treasurer of TRS and PEEHIP, and various members of the TRS Board and of the...
WISE , Justice . Quality Carriers, Inc., and Bennie Hugh Orcutt, two of the defendants below, filed a petition for a writ of mandamus requesting this Court to direct the Dallas Circuit Court to vacate its order denying their motion to transfer the underlying action to the Autauga Circuit Court and to enter an order granting the motion. We grant the petition and issue the writ. Facts and Procedural History On February 9, 2014, Desmond Rachard Woods was driving northbound on Interstate 65...
MAIN , Justice . Keith Westphal and Joyce Osborn Wilson filed this lawsuit against David Northcutt III, DMD, Bobby R. Wells, DMD, Stephen R. Stricklin, DMD, Thomas T. Willis, DMD, Sam J. Citrano, Jr., DMD, William Chesser, DMD, and Sandra Kay Alexander, RDH, in their official capacities as members of the Alabama Board of Dental Examiners (hereinafter referred to collectively as "the Dental Board"). Westphal and Wilson sought a judgment declaring unconstitutional the portion of the Alabama...
MAIN , Justice . Fairfield Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, LLC ("Fairfield"); D & N, LLC ("D & N"); DTD HC, LLC ("DTD"); Aurora Cares, LLC (alleged to be doing business, and herein sometimes referred to, as "Tara Cares"); and Aurora Healthcare, LLC ("Aurora") (hereinafter sometimes referred to collectively as "the defendants"), petition this Court for a writ of mandamus, directing the trial court to vacate its February 6, 2015, order denying their "Motion to Quash Depositions and Motion...
PER CURIAM. The University of South Alabama ("USA"), a state institution of higher learning, see 16-55-1 et seq., Ala.Code 1975, contends that it is immune from civil actions and petitions this Court for a writ of mandamus directing the Mobile Circuit Court to dismiss it from an action filed by Azin Agah, a former USA employee. Additionally, Amber Bartlett, a student who worked under Agah's supervision in USA's research laboratory and a defendant in the same underlying action, petitions...
SHAW , Justice . G del AG ("G del"), one of several defendants below, petitions this Court for a writ of mandamus directing the Crenshaw Circuit Court to vacate its order denying G del's motion to dismiss the personal-injury claims filed against it by Robert Rutledge ("Robert") and Cindy Rutledge ("Cindy") and to enter an order dismissing the Rutledges' claims on the basis of a lack of in personam jurisdiction. We grant the petition and issue the writ. Facts and Procedural History In...
SHAW , Justice . Nicholson Manufacturing Limited ("Nicholson") petitions this Court for a writ of mandamus directing the Tuscaloosa Circuit Court to enter a summary judgment in its favor on the ground that Gerald A. Templeton's substitution of Nicholson for a fictitiously named defendant was made after the expiration of the applicable statutory limitations period and does not "relate back" to the filing of the original complaint. We grant the petition and issue the writ. Facts and...
STUART , Justice . IBI Group, Michigan, LLC, f/k/a Giffels, LLC ("Giffels"), appeals the order of the Mobile Circuit Court ordering it to arbitrate its claims against Outokumpu Stainless USA, LLC, f/k/a ThyssenKrupp Stainless USA, LLC ("OTK"), and ThyssenKrupp Steel USA, LLC, f/k/a ThyssenKrupp Steel and Stainless USA, LLC ("TK Steel") (OTK and TK Steel are hereinafter referred to collectively as "the steel companies"), pursuant to an arbitration provision in the contracts at the center of...
MAIN , Justice . Amee Kozlovski, M.D., petitions this Court for a writ of mandamus directing the Mobile Circuit Court to enter a summary judgment in her favor in a wrongful-death action brought against her by David Shamlin, as administrator of the estate of Jeffery Brown, 1 deceased. We grant the petition and issue the writ. I. Facts and Procedural History In November 2011, following a physical attack on his father, David Brown, Jeffery Brown was involuntarily committed by the Mobile...
BRYAN , Justice . Branch Banking & Trust Company ("BB & T"), Rusty Winfree, and Todd Fullington (hereinafter collectively referred to as "the appellants") appeal a judgment entered by the Baldwin Circuit Court in favor of Rex A. Nichols ("Sonny") and Claudene Nichols ("Claudene") on the Nicholses' claims against the appellants and on BB & T's counterclaim against the Nicholses. We reverse the circuit court's judgment and remand the cause to the circuit court for further proceedings. Facts...
BOLIN , Justice . Roland Crouch and Sandra Crouch appeal from a summary judgment in favor of North Alabama Sand & Gravel, LLC, now operating as Alliance Sand & Gravel, LLC, 1 and Austin Powder Company ("Austin Powder") on the Crouches' claim asserting property damage resulting from Alliance Sand & Gravel's blasting operations. We affirm in part and reverse in part. I. Facts and Procedural History Alliance Sand & Gravel owns and operates a sand and gravel quarry in Franklin. Alliance...
PARKER , Justice . AFFIRMED. NO OPINION. See Rule 53(a)(1), (a)(2)(B), and (a)(2)(F), Ala. R.App. P. MOORE, C.J., and STUART, MAIN, and WISE, JJ., concur. BOLIN, MURDOCK, SHAW, and BRYAN, JJ., dissent. BOLIN , Justice (dissenting). In McMahon v. Yamaha Motor Corp., U.S.A., 95 So.3d 769 (Ala.2012) (" McMahon I "), I concurred with Justice Woodall's special writing dissenting from this Court's reversal of the judgment as a matter of law ("JML") on Jacklyn and Donald McMahon's...
