Justia Arkansas Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

In Arkansas, attorney Chris Corbitt and other plaintiffs sought to challenge the prohibition of firearms in courthouses. Corbitt had previously attempted to bring a firearm into the Pulaski County District Courthouse and the Juvenile Justice Complex, but was denied. He filed a complaint, which was dismissed by the circuit court and later affirmed by the Supreme Court of Arkansas. Despite this, Corbitt and other plaintiffs filed another complaint after encountering firearm restrictions in a different courthouse. This complaint was also dismissed.The circuit court ruled that Corbitt was not entitled to injunctive relief, declaratory judgment, or a writ of mandamus. The court also found that even if issue preclusion were not applicable, it would rule similarly to Judge Wright’s decision regarding the interpretation of Arkansas Code Annotated section 5-73-122. The court rejected the plaintiff’s argument, stating that it was based on a flawed premise that misread the plain meaning of the statute and ignored the importance of Amendment 80 to the Arkansas Constitution. The circuit court emphasized that Amendment 80 gives the Arkansas Supreme Court the power to regulate court procedure, including the discretion to determine when weapons should be allowed in courtrooms.The Supreme Court of Arkansas held that Corbitt was collaterally estopped from pursuing his claims due to the previous litigation, but the remaining plaintiffs could proceed. The court further held that attorneys, as officers of the court, are authorized by statute to possess handguns in courthouses. The court reversed the circuit court’s denial of the petition for a declaratory judgment as it pertains to the remaining plaintiffs and remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. View "CORBITT v. PULASKI COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT" on Justia Law

The case revolves around a dispute over a medical marijuana cultivation license issued by the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission to Bennett Scott “Storm” Nolan II. 2600 Holdings, LLC, an unsuccessful applicant for the same license, filed a lawsuit against the Commission and other state entities, alleging that Nolan's application did not meet the minimum merit selection criteria and that the Commission violated its own rules and the Arkansas Constitution in awarding the license to Nolan. Nolan was not initially named as a defendant or joined as a party in the lawsuit.The Pulaski County Circuit Court denied Nolan's multiple motions to join the lawsuit as an indispensable party under Rule 19(a) of the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure and granted summary judgment in favor of 2600 Holdings. The court ruled that the Commission had exceeded its discretion and violated the Arkansas Constitution and its own rules in awarding the license to Nolan.On appeal, the Supreme Court of Arkansas reversed the lower court's decision, finding that Nolan was indeed an indispensable party under Rule 19(a)(2). The court held that the lower court erred in not joining Nolan as an indispensable party to the litigation. As a result, the court vacated the order granting summary judgment to 2600 Holdings and remanded the case for further proceedings. The court did not address Nolan's remaining issues as they were deemed moot due to the reversal and remand. View "Nolan v. 2600 Holdings, LLC" on Justia Law

The case involves a group of appellants who allegedly purchased luxury vehicles with funds provided by Dilmurod Akramov, the owner of CBC and D&O Group. The appellants would then transfer the vehicle titles back to Akramov's D&O Group without receiving cash or equivalent in exchange. They would then claim a "trade-in credit" against the sales tax due on the purchase of a vehicle. The Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) argued that these were not valid sales as required by Arkansas law and denied the sales-tax-refund claims.The appellants challenged the DFA's decision through the administrative review process, which affirmed the DFA's decision. The appellants then appealed to the Pulaski County Circuit Court for further review. The circuit court found that the appellants' attorney, Jason Stuart, was a necessary witness and therefore disqualified him from further representing the appellants. The court also held the appellants in contempt for failing to provide discovery per the court's order.The Supreme Court of Arkansas affirmed the circuit court's decision. The court held that the circuit court did not abuse its discretion in disqualifying Stuart. The court applied the three-prong test from Weigel v. Farmers Ins. Co., which requires that the attorney's testimony is material to the determination of the issues being litigated, the evidence is unobtainable elsewhere, and the testimony is or may be prejudicial to the testifying attorney’s client. The court found that all three prongs were satisfied in this case. The court also affirmed the circuit court's decision to strike the third amended and supplemental complaint filed by Stuart after his disqualification. View "STUART v. WALTHER" on Justia Law

The case involves the Arkansas Voter Integrity Initiative, Inc., and Conrad Reynolds (appellants) who filed a complaint against John Thurston, the Arkansas Secretary of State, the Arkansas State Board of Election Commissioners, and Election Systems and Software, LLC (appellees). The appellants claimed that the voting machines approved by the state did not comply with the Arkansas Code and the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA) because voters could not independently verify their selections on the ballot before casting their votes. They argued that the machines printed ballots with both bar codes and the voter's selections in English, but the vote tabulator only scanned the bar codes. Since most voters cannot read bar codes, the appellants claimed that voters were unable to verify their votes as required by state and federal law. They also alleged that the appellees committed an illegal exaction by using public funds for the purchase and maintenance of these machines and that Election Systems and Software, LLC violated the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and committed fraud by claiming that its machines complied with state and federal law.The Pulaski County Circuit Court dismissed the appellants' complaint. The court found that the voting machines complied with the Arkansas Code and HAVA. The court also denied the appellants' motion for recusal and their motion for a new trial. The appellants appealed these decisions.The Supreme Court of Arkansas affirmed the lower court's decision. The court found that the voting process complied with the Arkansas Code and HAVA. The court also found that the appellants failed to demonstrate evidence of bias or prejudice sufficient to warrant the recusal of the circuit court judge. Finally, the court found that the appellants were not deprived of their right to a jury trial and that the circuit court did not err by denying their motion for a new trial. View "ARKANSAS VOTER INTEGRITY INITIATIVE, INC., AND CONRAD REYNOLDS v. JOHN THURSTON, IN HIS OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS ARKANSAS SECRETARY OF STATE; THE ARKANSAS STATE BOARD OF ELECTION COMMISSIONERS, IN ITS OFFICIAL CAPACITY; AND ELECTION SYSTEMS AND SOFTWARE, LLC" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court of Arkansas ruled in favor of the county assessor and other similarly positioned defendants, affirming the lower court's dismissal of a lawsuit brought by Ronald and Mitzi Kimbrough. The plaintiffs, representing themselves and other similarly situated taxpayers, had argued that the county assessor's method of calculating property tax assessments for homeowners over 65 or who are disabled violated the Arkansas Constitution's Amendment 79. In their view, the amendment should freeze the assessment on a homeowner's principal residence at the time of purchase. However, the defendants argued that the plaintiffs had failed to exhaust their administrative remedies, as required by law, before taking the case to court.The Supreme Court agreed with the defendants, noting that the plaintiffs' complaint must be handled by the County Court according to the Arkansas Constitution due to its relation to county taxes. The Court held that the plaintiffs had failed to exhaust the necessary administrative remedies before bringing the case to court, which deprived the court of subject-matter jurisdiction. The Court dismissed the plaintiffs' arguments about the potential policy implications of its ruling, noting that public policy is declared by the General Assembly, not the courts. Thus, the Court affirmed the lower court's dismissal of the case and dismissed the defendants' cross-appeal as moot. View "KIMBROUGH V. GRIEVE" on Justia Law

This case concerns a dispute arising from a real estate transaction between appellants Donnell and Marilyn Bauer and appellees Jesse Lee and Mary A. Beamon. The Bauers sold Lot 24A to the Beamons, failing to disclose certain defects and issues related to the property. After the sale, the Beamons discovered a mold issue in the residence and soil instability on an adjacent lot, Lot 18, which the Bauers had also owned. The Beamons attempted to remediate these issues, incurring significant costs. They ultimately sought to rescind the contract, alleging fraud and deceit by the Bauers.The Supreme Court of Arkansas affirmed the lower court's denial of the Beamons’ rescission claim, finding that the Beamons had waived their right to rescission by taking possession of the property, engaging in mold eradication, and attempting to remediate the soil conditions on the hillside. These actions were found to be inconsistent with an intent to rescind.However, the court reversed the lower court's award of damages to the Beamons for breach of contract. The court found that the Beamons had not alleged breach of contract in their complaint, and thus could not recover damages on that basis. Furthermore, the court found that the Bauers' constitutional right to a jury trial had been violated, as the Beamons’ claim for rescission, an equitable remedy, had been tried without a jury, and the Bauers were not given a jury trial on the legal claim for damages. View "BAUER V. BEAMON" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the order of the circuit court denying Appellant's motion for order to waive record fees in a suit brought under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) against the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR), holding that the circuit court correctly denied the motion to waive record fees.Appellant, a law professor at UALR, brought this action alleging FOIA violations. The circuit court dismissed the FOIA claim with prejudice. Appellant then moved to set aside the order, arguing that UALR violated the negotiated settlement. The circuit court denied the motion, and Appellant unsuccessfully attempted to appeal. As to his appeal of the order denying the motion to set aside, Appellant moved to waive record fees alleging that a fee assessed by the circuit clerk violated state law. The circuit court denied the motion, after which Appellant filed a second motion to waive record fees. The circuit court denied the motion and also denied Appellant's motion for summary judgment. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that no justiciable controversy existed in this case. View "Steinbuch v. University of Ark." on Justia Law

The Supreme Court vacated the order of the court of appeals granting the Grand Lodge's motion to dismiss Plaintiff's appeal from the circuit court order dismissing the complaint based on Plaintiff's failure to file a complete record while, at the same time, denying Plaintiff's motion for writ of certiorari to complete the record, holding that the appeal must be dismissed.In dismissing Plaintiff's complaint the circuit court concluded that the complaint was legally insufficient. Plaintiff filed a notice of appeal but did not receive the transcript when the deadline to file the record passed. The Grand Lodge filed a motion seeking to dismiss the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, which the court of appeals granted. On appeal, Plaintiff argued that he could not have good faith filed a motion for an extension for filing the record with the clerk of the Supreme Court because he could not show that more time was necessary. The Supreme Court vacated the court of appeals' order and granted the Grand Lodge's motion to dismiss this appeal, holding that Plaintiff failed to file an extension order or demonstrate that he was unable to do so and failed to demonstrate that it would be unjust to dismiss his appeal. View "Cook v. Most Worshipful Grand Lodge" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part the judgment of the circuit court awarding $18,160,000 in attorneys' fees to Appellees, holding that the circuit court erred in its award of attorneys' fees and costs but did not err in denying Appellees' motion for contempt.On appeal, certain appellants argued that the circuit court erred in its application of the factors set forth in Chrisco v. Sun Industries, 800 S.W.2d 717 (Ark. 1990) and that they should not have to pay attorneys' fees. Other appellants argued that sovereign immunity barred the fee award. Appellees cross-appealed, arguing that the circuit court erred in denying their motion for contempt. The Supreme Court held (1) in the absence of express statutory authority, the circuit court abused its discretion in awarding a flat fifteen percent attorneys' fee award of $18.16 million in attorneys' fees and costs; and (2) the circuit court properly denied Appellees' contempt motion. View "Gibson v. Buonauito" on Justia Law

Legal Aid submitted an Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Division of Workforce Services (DWS) seeking information about how DWS and its third-party vendors determined eligibility for applicants of the Unemployment Insurance and/or Pandemic Unemployment Assistance programs. Item 10 sought “[a]ll public records, including communications, created by, sent by, sent to, or otherwise provided to DWS employees between March 1, 2020, and present that contain the words ‘algo’ or ‘algorithm’ in singular or plural form.” Legal Aid did not request confidential information about any claimant.After DWS failed to provide a timeline for the production of the documents, Legal Aid filed suit. DWS’s representative testified that the records responsive to Item 10 were expected to comprise more than 42,000 pages of emails that had to be printed, reviewed, and redacted. The circuit court ordered DWS to submit an estimated timeline for production and to provide records on a weekly basis in accordance with its timeline. Legal Aid subsequently claimed that DWS redacted information that concerned algorithms, or factors, that the agency uses in its processes to determine benefit eligibility. DWS cited ongoing fraud investigations. The Arkansas Supreme Court affirmed an order that the unredacted documents be produced, and that access to and management of the documents be limited. The court found that neither the law enforcement nor the competitive advantage FOIA exception applied. View "Arkansas Department of Commerce, Division of Workforce Services v. Legal AId of Arkansas" on Justia Law