J & C Truck Driving Sch., Inc. v. Ingram
| Decision Date | 24 October 2014 |
| Docket Number | 2130252. |
| Citation | 166 So.3d 690 |
| Parties | J & C TRUCK DRIVING SCHOOL, INC. v. Charles L. INGRAM, Sr. |
| Court | Alabama Court of Civil Appeals |
Mark N. Chambless of Chambless Math & Carr, P.C., Montgomery, for appellant.
Submitted on appellant's brief only.
Under Alabama law, a judgment creditor who files a contest of a judgment debtor's claim of exemption is entitled to a hearing on the issue. See Rule 64B, Ala. R. Civ. P. Because a hearing in this case, which involves a judgment creditor's contest of a judgment debtor's claim of exemption, was not held as requested, we reverse the order of the Russell Circuit Court (“the trial court”) granting the claim of exemption filed by Charles L. Ingram, Sr., and remand the cause to the trial court to conduct a hearing on the contest of the claim of exemption filed by J & C Truck Driving School, Inc. (“J & C”).
J & C provides training in driving trucks. On March 19, 2003, Ingram entered into a retail installment contract with J & C for the purpose of receiving truck-driving training. Pursuant to the terms of the contract, Ingram agreed to pay J & C $9,972.60 for the training. The contract also contained a provision for an award of attorney fees and other costs of collection against Ingram if Ingram did not pay as required and the contract was referred to collection.1
On November 12, 2012, J & C filed a complaint in the trial court against Ingram alleging that he had not paid as required by the contract. J & C's complaint asserted damages in the amount of $9,972.60, together with claims for $17,385.12 in interest and $3,154.20 in attorney fees. Ingram was served with process by certified mail on November 30, 2012. On December 14, 2012, Ingram filed an answer denying that he owed any money to J & C. A trial was set to begin on June 25, 2013. On June 28, 2013, the trial court entered a judgment in favor of J & C and against Ingram, awarding damages in the amount of $9,972.60, prejudgment interest in the amount of $11,000, attorney fees in the amount of $1,500, and court costs. On August 27, 2013, J & C filed a process of garnishment in the trial court seeking to garnish funds from Ingram's account with Wells Fargo Bank, National Association (“Wells Fargo”). The trial-court clerk issued the process of garnishment to Wells Fargo on September 13, 2013. Wells Fargo was served with process on September 19, 2013.
On September 20, 2013, Ingram, without the assistance of counsel, filed a handwritten statement in the trial court (“the claim of exemption”) in which he asserted that the funds in the Wells Fargo bank account consisted of moneys deposited into the account as veteran's disability benefits and Social Security benefits. In support of this assertion, Ingram attached to the filing a bank statement from Wells Fargo for a single month indicating that funds had been deposited into the account from the United States Treasury and from the Social Security Administration.
On September 25, 2013, J & C filed a contest to the claim of exemption and a motion to strike the claim of exemption. In that motion, J & C contended that Ingram had failed to file a proper inventory of all of his personal property as required by § 6–10–29, Ala.Code 1975. The motion also contended that Ingram had failed to file his claim of exemption in the probate court as required by § 6–10–20, Ala.Code 1975.
On September 30, 2013, Wells Fargo filed an answer to the garnishment, acknowledging that it had possession of funds belonging to Ingram in the amount of $15,461.24. On that same day, Ingram filed a letter response to the garnishment in which he again asserted that the funds in the account were “Veteran Disability Funds and Social Security Benefits.” He also attached additional bank statements from Wells Fargo.
On October 8, 2013, the trial court, without conducting a hearing, entered an order setting aside the garnishment on the basis of Ingram's claim of exemption. That order was a final judgment because it “ ‘conclud[ed] the rights of the parties in respect to the cause of action involved.’ ” Robbins v. State ex rel. Priddy, 109 So.3d 1128, 1132 (Ala.Civ.App.2012) (quoting Steiner Bros. v. First Nat'l Bank of Birmingham, 115 Ala. 379, 384, 22 So. 30, 31 (1897) (emphasis omitted)). On October 9, 2013, J & C filed a motion pursuant to Rule 59(e), Ala. R. Civ. P., to alter, amend, or vacate the October 8, 2013, order and requested that the matter be set for a hearing. In that motion, J & C again asserted that Ingram had failed to submit a proper claim of exemption and that Ingram had failed to follow the proper procedures for claiming an exemption. J & C also contended that the trial court had improperly granted Ingram's claim of exemption without conducting a hearing on J & C's contest to the claim of exemption. On October 30, 2013, Ingram, without the assistance of counsel, filed a letter in the trial court in which he, again, stated that the funds in the Wells Fargo bank account derived from veteran's disability benefits and Social Security benefits. He also stated in that filing that he owned a residence, a 1997 Lincoln vehicle, and personal property. J & C filed a notice of appeal to this court on December 16, 2013, while its postjudgment motion was pending. On January 7, 2014, J & C's postjudgment motion was denied by operation of law, pursuant to Rule 59.1, Ala. R. Civ. P., and the case then proceeded on appeal in accordance with J & C's December 16, 2013, notice of appeal to this court. See New Addition Club, Inc. v. Vaughn, 903 So.2d 68, 71 (Ala.2004) ().
On appeal, J & C contends that the trial court erred by granting Ingram's claim of exemption...
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Fields v. State Dep't of Human Res. ex rel. Fields, 2150799.
...Accordingly, the former husband was denied his right to be heard. Robbins, 109 So.3d at 1131. See also J & C Truck Driving Sch., Inc. v. Ingram, 166 So.3d 690, 693 (Ala. Civ. App. 2014) (holding that, pursuant to Rule 64B, Ala. R. Civ. P., a judgment creditor was entitled to a hearing on it......