JOHN DAN KEMP , Chief Justice . Appellant, The Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas (Board), filed this interlocutory appeal of an order of the Polk County Circuit Court denying a motion to dismiss an action brought by appellee Matthew Andrews for violations of the overtime provisions of the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act, codified at Arkansas Code Annotated sections 11-4-201 to -222 (Repl. 2012 & Supp. 2017). For reversal, the Board argues that the circuit court erred in denying...
SHAWN A. WOMACK , Associate Justice . Debra Mason appeals from an order in the Pulaski County Circuit Court terminating her previous alimony award pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. 9-12-312(a)(2)(D) (Repl. 2015). She argues that the statute may not be applied retroactively to divorce decrees entered prior to a statutory amendment, the statute is unconstitutionally vague, and the circuit court's previous order stated the only grounds upon which alimony would terminate, rendering the statute...
COURTNEY HUDSON GOODSON , Associate Justice . Appellant Debbie Worsham appeals the Franklin County Circuit Court's order granting appellees Roy and Teresa Days' motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict ("JNOV") or for a new trial. For reversal, Worsham argues that (1) the circuit court abused its discretion in granting a new trial based on inconsistent verdicts because the Days failed to object to any inconsistency before the jury was discharged; (2) the circuit court abused its...
COURTNEY HUDSON GOODSON , Associate Justice . Appellants James Tree and Crane Service, Inc., and Roger Williams (collectively, "James Tree") appeal from the Pulaski County Circuit Court's order granting appellee Terri Fought's motion for a new trial. For reversal, James Tree argues that the circuit court abused its discretion in granting Fought's motion for a new trial and in setting aside the jury's unanimous verdict in favor of James Tree. This case is on review from the Arkansas Court of...
KAREN R. BAKER , Associate Justice . Appellants Robinson Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, LLC, d/b/a Robinson Nursing and Rehabilitation Center; Central Arkansas Nursing Centers, Inc.; Nursing Consultants, Inc.; and Michael Morton (collectively "Robinson") bring an interlocutory appeal of the Pulaski County Circuit Court's order certifying a class action filed by appellees Andrew Phillips, as personal representative of the estate of Dorothy Phillips, and others (collectively "Phillips")....
JOSEPHINE LINKER HART , Justice . Marilyn Curry Troutman (Curry) appeals from a December 8, 2014 Washington County Circuit Court order reducing her exhusband Ronald Troutman's monthly child-support obligation to $2108 from $6005 per month established by an agreement of the parties and memorialized in an order entered on October 25, 2012. The new support obligation was made retroactive to June 9, 2014, and the circuit court ordered amortization of the $27,279 overpayment by a further $1000...
JOHN DAN KEMP , Chief Justice . Appellants, City of North Little Rock; Mayor Joe Smith; Alderman Debi Ross; Alderman Beth White; Alderman Linda Robinson; Alderman Maurice Taylor; Alderman Steve Baxter; Alderman Bruce Foutch; Alderman Murry Witcher; and Alderman Charlie Hight ("the City"), in their official capacities, appeal an order of the Pulaski County Circuit Court granting a writ of mandamus filed by Eugene M. Pfeifer III and the Pfeifer Family Limited Partnership #1 ("Pfeifer"). For...
ROBIN F. WYNNE , Associate Justice . This is an appeal from the Mississippi County Circuit Court's judgment granting a permanent injunction of a March 14, 2017 special election. Appellants argue that the circuit court erred by enjoining the special election on the grounds that Act 81 of 1901, which establishes two separate judicial districts in Mississippi County, prohibits an ordinance that amends an existing sales-and-use tax and an ordinance that authorizes the issuance of bonds to...
COURTNEY HUDSON GOODSON , Associate Justice . The State of Arkansas appeals the "Judgment Finding the Defendant Not Guilty" entered by the St. Francis County Circuit Court after granting the directed-verdict motion of appellee Christopher Martin. For reversal, the State contends that the circuit court committed an error of law by acquitting Martin based on a finding that his arrest was illegal. The State asserts that we need not determine the legality of arrest, but rather urges us to...
JOHN DAN KEMP , Chief Justice . This is an appeal from the Mississippi County Circuit Court's order issuing a temporary injunction and enjoining the August 9, 2016 special election to amend an existing sales-and-use tax and to issue bonds to finance the construction of a new Mississippi County courthouse. For reversal, appellants, Mississippi County and others (the County), 1 contend that the circuit court erred by enjoining the August 9 special election and ruling that section 20 of Act...
ROBIN F. WYNNE , Associate Justice Robin Emis appeals the Pulaski County Circuit Court's change-of-custody award in favor of her ex-husband, appellee Keith Emis, and she also challenges the circuit court's denial of her motion to recuse, the award of attorney's fees to the attorney ad litem and to Keith's counsel, the striking of an affidavit is support of her recusal motion, and the denial of her motion to vacate the appointment of the attorney ad litem. This case is before us...
RHONDA K. WOOD , Associate Justice . A class of police officers and firefighters brought a class-action complaint against their employer, the City of Conway. The class alleged that the City breached its employment contract with them when it failed to allocate sales-tax revenues to fund salary increases. The issue before us now is the circuit court's order certifying the class action. The City has appealed from this order, arguing that individual issues render a class action impractical. We...
JOSEPHINE LINKER HART , Associate Justice . The question raised in this appeal is whether the appellants, the City of Little Rock, Arkansas (the "City"), its employees, and Little Rock Ambulance Authority, doing business as Metropolitan Emergency Medical Services ("MEMS"), may assert the affirmative defense of statutory immunity provided for by Arkansas Code Annotated 21-9-301 (Supp. 2015), in the lawsuit filed by Dayong Yang, as special administrator of the estate of his deceased child,...
COURTNEY HUDSON GOODSON , Associate Justice . Appellant Sarah Gildehaus appeals the order entered by the Benton County Circuit Court dismissing her petition for judicial review of the decision of appellee, the Arkansas Alcoholic Beverage Control Board (Board), on the basis that she lacked standing. Gildehaus also contests the circuit court's alternative ruling that even if she did have standing, it would affirm the findings of the Board. For reversal, Gildehaus argues that (1) the circuit...
ROBIN F. WYNNE , Associate Justice . Chuck Lange and Bill Walmsley, Individually and on behalf of Committee to Protect Arkansas Values/Stop Casinos Now, filed an original action in this court challenging the Arkansas Secretary of State's certification of a proposed amendment to allow three casinos to operate in Arkansas for the November 8, 2016 general election ballot. The complaint contains three counts. Counts I and II challenge the ballot title of the proposed amendment. Count III...
KAREN R. BAKER , Associate Justice . Petitioners, Chuck Lange and Bill Walmsley, Individually, and on Behalf of Committee to Protect Arkansas' Values/Stop Casinos Now ("Lange"), bring this original action challenging the legal sufficiency of the ballot title for Issue No. 5, a proposed constitutional amendment with the popular name "An Amendment to Allow Three Casinos to Operate In Arkansas, One Each In the Following Counties: Boone County, Operated by Arkansas Gaming and Resorts, LLC;...
ROBIN F. WYNNE , Associate Justice . On December 3, 2015, pursuant to Rule 6-8 of the Rules of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals of the State of Arkansas, this court accepted certification of the following question of law: Under Arkansas's tort of conversion, can intangible property such as electronic data, standing alone and not deemed a trade secret, be converted Integrated Direct Mktg., LLC v. May, 2015 Ark. 454 (per curiam). As explained below, we answer this question in the...
COURTNEY HUDSON GOODSON , Associate Justice . Petitioners Capital SeniorCare Ventures, LLC, et al. ("Capital SeniorCare") seek a writ of certiorari to the Pulaski County Circuit Court to quash proceedings in that court. In support of the petition, Capital SeniorCare argues that the circuit court proceedings against it are irregular and erroneous on the face of the record because the plaintiff in the lawsuit has commenced three actions alleging the same claims and injuries in violation of...
KAREN R. BAKER , Associate Justice . On December 17, 2013, the appellee Arkansas Department of Human Services ("DHS") took a seventy-two-hour hold on Priscilla Ponder's children, A.P., E.P., and J.P. after the death of L.C., a sibling. Ponder is the appellant in this matter. DHS and A.P., E.P., and J.P. are joint appellees in this appeal and will be referred to collectively as "DHS." The children were removed from the home, and A.P. was placed with one set of relatives and E.P. and J.P....
KAREN R. BAKER , Associate Justice . This appeal stems from a petition to terminate a permanent guardianship. Appellant, Temika Donley, and appellee, Lakitcher ("Kisha") Donley, are half sisters. Temika appeals the order of the Pulaski County Circuit Court denying her petition to terminate Kisha's guardianship over Temika's daughter, M.B. I. Facts and Procedural History On April 9, 2012, Kisha filed a petition for temporary guardianship of M.B. and a motion for an expedited hearing. The...
