Stratton v. First Nat. Life Ins. Co.

• Decision Date: 23 May 1989
• Docket Number: No. B036179,B036179
• Citation: 258 Cal.Rptr. 721,210 Cal.App.3d 1071
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: Michael L. STRATTON, Plaintiff, v. FIRST NATIONAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Defendant, Cross-complainant and Appellant; Continental Association of Resolute Employers et al., Defendants, Cross-defendants and Respondents.

Page 721

258 Cal.Rptr. 721

210 Cal.App.3d 1071

Michael L. STRATTON, Plaintiff, v. FIRST NATIONAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Defendant, Cross-complainant and Appellant Continental Association of Resolute Employers et al., Defendants, Cross-defendants and Respondents.

No. B036179.

Court of Appeal, Second District, Division 1, California.

May 23, 1989.

As Modified June 8, 1989.

Cummins & White, James R. Wakefield, and Ted G. Schwartz, Los Angeles, for defendant, cross-complainant and appellant.

Barger & Wolen, and Gail E. Cohen, Los Angeles, for defendants, cross-defendants and respondents.

L. THAXTON HANSON, Associate Justice.

On January 23, 1985, plaintiff Michael L. Stratton ("plaintiff" and/or "Stratton") filed a complaint against defendants First National Life Insurance Company (hereinafter FN Life), California Pacific Life Insurance Company (hereinafter CP Life), Continental Association of Resolute Employers (hereinafter CARE), and Does. The complaint stated six causes of action, for (1) declaratory relief; (2) breach of contract; (3) bad faith (4) fraud; (5) breach of statutory duties (Ins. Code, § 790.03); and (6) emotional distress.

INTRODUCTION AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Plaintiff is a medical doctor who became seriously ill with liver disease in 1982. Defendants FN Life and CP Life are insurers who accepted premiums from plaintiff for medical insurance coverage under a group policy issued by defendant CP Life in May, 1982, to plaintiff's employer, Lebedeff and Stratton, Inc., through the entity known as CARE, described as an employer's association. The policy assertedly was assumed by FN Life effective January 1, 1983.

Plaintiff was an included employee pursuant to the policy, entitled to major medical coverage with a maximum of $1 million. Plaintiff asserted below that both of these defendants refused to pay plaintiff's medical expenses after March 30, 1984, with catastrophic results for plaintiff; plaintiff was forced to undergo a liver transplant operation in August 1984, and, it is asserted, was financially destroyed, reduced to being provided the essentials of life by the charity of his friends.

Defendants CP Life and CARE answered plaintiff's complaint on January 10, 1986; Defendant FN Life filed its answer on March 26, 1986. FN Life also filed a cross-complaint against CP Life and CARE, for declaratory relief and indemnity; FN Life charged that CP Life and CARE had "failed to place and maintain" Stratton's coverage prior to FN Life's assumption of the risk. Defendants CP Life and CARE, (in concert in this litigation), filed a cross-complaint against FN Life for declaratory relief and equitable indemnity; CP Life-CARE asserted that FN Life was responsible for plaintiff's medical coverage.

Defendants CP Life and CARE sought summary judgment against plaintiff Stratton and defendant FN Life. On December 14, 1987, the motion for summary judgment was heard in the trial court. A minute order was issued that day declaring that defendants CP Life and CARE were entitled to summary judgment against plaintiff and FN Life. The minute order expressly directed defendants CP Life and CARE to prepare a judgment. Defendants CP Life and CARE served notice of ruling on December 21, 1987, and filed it on December 22, 1987.

Counsel for FN Life asserted that he did not receive notice of ruling until December 28, 1987. On January 7, 1988, FN Life filed a motion for reconsideration of the ruling of December 14, 1987, pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 1008. Defendants filed opposition to the motion for reconsideration.

On March 11, 1988, the trial court again ruled in favor of CP Life and CARE and a judgment was entered that day. On May 16, 1988, CP Life and CARE served FN Life with the judgment of March 11, 1988, and notice of entry of judgment. FN Life filed its notice of appeal on July 6, 1988. Plaintiff Stratton did not file a notice of appeal. The parties before this court are the two insurers and CARE. The parties on appeal entered into a joint stipulation electing to prepare the appellate record pursuant to California Rules of Court, rule 5.1.

TIMELINESS OF APPEAL

After the appellate briefs were filed and pending oral argument in this court, we advised the parties by letter on February 2, 1989, that an additional issue was present in the case, i.e., the timeliness of FN Life's appeal, in light of California Rules of Court, rule 3(b). The parties were invited to submit letter briefs if they so desired and to be ready, in any event, to address the timeliness issue at oral argument. FN Life responded by letter brief, arguing that the appeal was governed by California Rules of Court, rule 2(a), rather than rule 3(b), and was timely.

At oral argument the parties relied on Blue Mountain Development Co. v. Carville (1982) 132 Cal.App.3d 1005, 183 Cal.Rptr. 594 and Tunis v. Barrow (1986) 184 Cal.App.3d 1069, 229 Cal.Rptr. 389 as establishing that California Rules of Court, rule 2(a) applied to their appeal rather than rule 3(b). Tunis relied on Blue Mountain and we will address the issue presented by Blue Mountain.

The timeliness issue arises because after judgment in the trial court on December 14, 1987, defendant FN Life filed a motion for reconsideration pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 1008. The appeal was not taken until July 6, 1988. We must determine whether the timeliness of FN Life's appeal is governed by California Rules of Court, rule 2 or by rule 3. If governed by rule 2, the appeal was timely; if governed by rule 3, the appeal was not.

The importance of applying the correct rule to a given factual situation cannot be overemphasized because the timeliness of an appeal is a jurisdictional issue. Under the present rules, a reviewing court has considerable discretion in permitting the late filing of motions and briefs after the timely filing of a notice of appeal, but it has no discretion to relieve any party from the duty to file the notice of appeal itself within the time frames of California Rules of Court, rules 2 or 3. The applicable time frame is mandatory; the reviewing court has no jurisdiction to act upon an untimely appeal. (Estate of Hanley (1943) 23 Cal.2d 120, 142 P.2d 423; Hollister Convalescent Hosp., Inc. v. Rico (1975) 15 Cal.3d 660, 674, 125 Cal.Rptr. 757, 542 P.2d 1349.)

Rule 2(a) provides, in pertinent part, that "[a] notice of appeal shall be filed within 60 days after the date of mailing notice of entry of judgment by the clerk of the court ... or within 60 days after the date of service of written notice of entry of judgment by any party upon the party filing the notice of appeal, or within 180 days after the date of entry of judgment, whichever is earliest, unless the time is extended as provided in rule 3."

Defining what constitutes "entry of judgment" has provided some problems when computing the timeliness of an appeal under rule 2. For the purpose of our discussion here, rule 2(b)(2) provides that "[t]he date of entry of an appealable order which is entered in the minutes shall be the date of its entry in the permanent minutes, unless such minute order as entered expressly directs that a written order be prepared, signed and filed, in which case the date of entry shall be the date of filing of the signed order." (Emphasis added.)

Ordinarily, rule 2 controls the timeliness of the filing of a notice of appeal in civil matters; in subdivision (c) the problem of premature filing is addressed, conferring upon this court the discretion, for good cause, to treat a premature notice of appeal as a valid filing from a judgment subsequently entered in the trial court.

Rule 3 governs the situation which arises when a party seeks post-judgment relief in the trial court. Rule 3(a) provides specifically for a new trial motion in the trial court, and states that when such a motion is filed and denied, "the time for filing the notice of appeal from the judgment is extended for all parties until 30 days after either entry of the order denying the motion or denial thereof by operation of law, but in no event may such notice of appeal be filed later than 180 days after the date of entry of the judgment whether or not the motion for new trial has been determined." (Emphasis added.) By permitting a limited extension, the rule is intended to be of assistance to parties seeking post-judgment relief below, but is not intended to permit parties to proceed in dilatory fashion.

Subdivision (b), added by amendment in 1983, is described in the "Draftsman's Explanatory Notes" as applying the theory of (the 30-day extension) "to the various motions to vacate a judgment. A time limit is placed on the extension, roughly in conformity with the new trial provision."

The subdivision provides, as follows:

"When a valid notice of intention to move to vacate a judgment or to vacate a judgment and enter another and different judgment is served and filed by any party on any ground within the time in which, under rule 2, a notice of appeal may be filed, or such shorter time as may be prescribed by statute, the time for filing the notice of appeal from the judgment is extended for all parties until the earliest of 30 days after entry of the order denying the motion to vacate; or 90 days after filing the first notice of intention to move to vacate the judgment; or 180 days after the entry of the judgment." (Emphasis added.)

As with construction of statutes, interpretation of the court rules is governed by certain general principles. It is our task to determine the intent of the draftsmen, including the perceived objective of the rules; to attribute to the rules their clearly expressed purpose and meaning; and to bear in mind the interrelation of the rules within the entire framework presented, arriving at a logical, reasonable and fair result. The analysis should consider, too, the case law already developed concerning proper interpretation of the rules.

At issue in the present...