Campbell v. Smith, 44660

Decision Date19 February 1968
Docket NumberNo. 44660,44660
Citation207 So.2d 342
PartiesMrs. Hilda CAMPBELL v. Fagan SMITH.
CourtMississippi Supreme Court

J. E. Campbell, Laurel, for appellant.

A. S. Scott, Jr., Laurel, for appellee.

SMITH, Justice.

Mrs. Hilda Campbell has appealed from a judgment recovered against her by appellee, Fagan Smith, in the Circuit Court for the Second Judicial District of Jones County.

The case was first before this Court upon a motion of the appellee to strike the appeal bond because of noncompliance with Mississippi Code 1942 Annotated section 1163 (1956). Following a hearing on the motion, the Court granted fifteen days for the defects to be corrected, and an amended bond was filed April 24, 1967, within the time allowed. Thereafter, no brief was filed by the appellant and, on motion, the appeal was dismissed. However, a motion to reinstate the appeal was sustained on October 10, 1967, and the appellant was granted forty days within which to file a brief. A brief was filed by appellant on November 22, 1967.

On May 2, 1967, appellee filed a motion to strike the supersedeas bond filed April 24, 1967, alleging that the sureties were not good for the obligation. A brief was filed in support of the motion as required by the rule. Thus the case is presently before the Court on the appellee's motion to strike the supersedeas bond, the brief filed in its support, a motion filed by appellant to strike that motion upon the ground that appellee is in default in filing his brief on the merits, and appellant's brief on the merits which was filed following the reinstatement order.

The many vicissitudes which have beset and delayed the appeal in this case have been due to various circumstances which it would serve no useful purpose to relate. Suffice it to say that appellant's brief is now on file and it appears that the brief filed by appellee in support of his most recent motion is also substantially responsive to the questions raised by appellant's assignment of errors and her brief upon the merits.

In view of the reinstatement of the appeal and the granting to appellant of additional time for filing her brief, fairness would require that appellee also be allowed further time, if requested, to respond. However, because of the special circumstances which already have resulted in unusual delay, we have decided in order to expedite a decision of the case, to treat appellee's brief filed with his motion to dismiss as his response to appellant's brief on the merits.

Appellant assigns and argues only two grounds for reversal:

(1) The trial court erred in refusing to grant her request for an instruction to the jury of the type sometimes referred...

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