Woodson v. City of Independence

• Decision Date: 13 January 2004
• Docket Number: No. WD 62202.,WD 62202.
• Citation: 124 S.W.3d 20
• Parties: Robert L. WOODSON, Appellant, v. CITY OF INDEPENDENCE, et al., Respondent.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

124 S.W.3d 20

Robert L. WOODSON, Appellant, v. CITY OF INDEPENDENCE, et al., Respondent.

No. WD 62202.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District.

January 13, 2004.

Robert L. Woodson, Kansas City, MO, pro se.

Steven E. Mauer, Kansas City, MO, for Respondent.

Before THOMAS H. NEWTON, P.J., PATRICIA A. BRECKENRIDGE and PAUL M. SPINDEN, JJ.

THOMAS H. NEWTON, Presiding Judge.

In 2001, the City of Independence (City) determined that a home owned by Mr. Robert L. Woodson was a dangerous building. Mr. Woodson appealed this finding to the circuit court. The City sought summary judgment on the grounds of collateral estoppel, asserting that the house had already been found to be a dangerous building in 1996 and, therefore, it was unnecessary to relitigate this issue. Mr. Woodson countered that a Release filed by the City in 2000 released that house from the 1996 finding because it was fully repaired. Although the Release specifically referred to a Notice that had been filed in 1996 about the house at issue, because the Release listed an address covering four homes, the City insisted it applied to a different home. In spite of the ambiguity created by the Release as to whether the problems with the house were resolved by 2000, the circuit court granted the City's motion. We reverse.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Mr. Woodson filed a Petition for Review of a dangerous building determination on one of his buildings. The City filed a motion for summary judgment, asserting the affirmative defense of collateral estoppel. The circuit court granted the City's motion.

Mr. Woodson owns the property located in Independence, Missouri. Its main address is 1221 Allen Road; however, there are four houses on that property, each with its own address: 1217, 1219, 1221, and 1223.

In 1996, the City determined that 1223 N. Allen Road was a dangerous building in violation of the City's Code, section 4.01.008. On November 1, 1996, the City filed a Notice with the Recorder declaring that the "property located at 1223 N. Allen Rd., Independence, MO, and legally described as Dickinsons W B ADD. All Ex S 199.15' of W 155' of Lot 22" was a dangerous building. This was Document Number I0069244, Book I2919, Page 1461. On December 9, 1996, the Building Official's Findings of Facts listed the following defects: (a) soffits and eaves missing sections; (b) siding broken and deteriorated; (c) missing sections of roof, weather deterioration; (d) interior ceilings water damaged, moldy, and collapsing; (e) interior floor having holes, spongy; (f) bare splices in wiring; and (g) damaged smoke detector. Mr. Woodson appealed this determination to the Circuit Court and then to this Court, where it was dismissed for failure to timely prosecute his appeal.

Mr. Woodson claims that he thereafter made all of the repairs required by the 1996 finding. The City, however, claims that no repairs were made, but that the case was not followed up and so the house was never demolished.

A Release was filed with the Recorder on September 25, 2000, which stated that the City:

releases that NOTICE filed by the City on the 1st day of November, 1996, and recorded as Document Number I0069244[,] Book I2919, page 1461.

The dangerous building located at 1221 Allen Rd., and legally described as, Dickinson's W.B. Addition, all except the south 199.15 feet of west 155 feet of lot 22, ... has been resolved and the dangerous conditions no longer exist.

Mr. Woodson claims this Release released 1223 N. Allen from the dangerous building finding because it specifically states that it releases the Notice from November 1, 1996, and lists the same Document, Book, and page number as the Notice that said 1223 N. Allen was a dangerous building. The City claims the Release applied to the house at 1221 Allen, which was another dangerous building that was repaired,¹ because the Release says "1221" and not "1223."

On June 22, 2001, the City sent Mr. Woodson notice of violations of the City Code, section 4.01.008, on the 1223 N. Allen Road property. On September 18, 2001, the Building Official again produced Findings of Fact, listing the following defects: (a) deteriorating, sagging roof; (b) defective attempts to repair being done without permits; (c) rotten soffits and fascia; (d) exposed bare rotten wood siding; and (e) dilapidated accessory building (apparently a garage). These Findings also named the building as "the property commonly known as 1221 Allen Road, Independence, Jackson County, Missouri, with buildings at an address of 1223 N. Allen Rd., Independence, Jackson County, Missouri." This finding was appealed to the Board of Building and Engineering Appeals. On December 18, 2001, the Findings of the Building Official were upheld.

Mr. Woodson appealed this finding to the circuit court. The City filed a motion for summary judgment on the grounds of collateral estoppel, claiming the question of whether the house at 1223 N. Allen Road was a dangerous building had already been adjudicated. The circuit court held a hearing on this motion. At the hearing, the City explained that because it had not demolished the building in 1997, it started the procedure over to determine whether the status of the house had changed, in spite of the lack of permits for repairs. The City claimed that after an inspection of the house, it discovered that the house had not been repaired and was still a dangerous building. Mr. Woodson claimed that he had done the repairs and that those repairs did not require a permit. He asserted that the Release demonstrated that those repairs were completed, so the house could not "still" be a dangerous building. He further maintained that when the City was inspecting the house, it discovered repairs of the roof in progress and put a stop order on the repair work, contradicting the City's assertion that he made no repairs.

The circuit court granted the City's motion for summary judgment, finding that Mr. Woodson's Petition for Review of the Board of Appeals was barred by collateral estoppel. Mr. Woodson appeals, raising two points, each containing three subpoints. In his first point, Mr. Woodson asserts that the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment because the City did not comply with Rule 74.04,² the City's counsel knowingly made false and/or unsubstantiated statements,³ and the City referred to ordinances to prove its case but did not provide certified copies of those ordinances to the court. In his second point, Mr. Woodson asserts that the circuit court erred in finding his Petition was barred by collateral estoppel because the issues in the two cases were not identical, the City cannot take a position inconsistent with its previous position, and the City admitted that if the defects listed in 1996 had been repaired then collateral estoppel would not exist.

II. MOTION TO DISMISS FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH RULE 84.04

The City has filed a motion to strike Mr. Woodson's brief for failure to comply with several sections of Rule 84.04. Although Mr. Woodson has not filed a similar motion with respect to the City's brief, in his reply brief he attacks the City's brief for similar violations of Rule 84.04. Where necessary in discussing the City's motion, we will also address Mr. Woodson's points.

Mr. Woodson is appearing pro se, but he is still held to the same standard as an attorney and, therefore, must comply with the requirements of Rule 84.04. Kittle v. Kittle, 31 S.W.3d 127, 129 (Mo.App. S.D.2000). Substantial compliance with Rule 84.04 is mandatory. Gray v. White, 26 S.W.3d 806, 815 (Mo.App. E.D.1999). Requiring compliance with Rule 84.04 ensures that the appellate court does not act as an advocate for the party by speculating on facts and arguments that were not asserted. Stickley v. Auto Credit, Inc., 53 S.W.3d 560, 562 (Mo.App. W.D.2001).

Appellate courts are not obligated to review an appeal on the merits when the brief violates the requirements of Rule 84.04, and may dismiss the appeal. Weisenburger v. City of St. Joseph, 51 S.W.3d 119, 125 (Mo.App. W.D.2001). But "the procedural rules are to be liberally construed to promote justice and minimize the number of cases disposed of on technical grounds." Geiersbach v. Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Kansas City, 58 S.W.3d 636, 639 (Mo.App. W.D.2001). So we have discretion to review an appeal on the merits even when various parts of the brief do not comply with Rule 84.04. Gray, 26 S.W.3d at 816.

The City first complains that Mr. Woodson's statement of facts does not comply with Rule 84.04(c), particularly that the facts are biased and inflammatory.⁴ Interestingly, Mr. Woodson complains that the City's statement of facts also does not comply with Rule 84.04(c) because the facts asserted are argumentative and unsupported. The statement of facts is required to be fair and concise, giving the appellate court an immediate, accurate complete, and unbiased understanding of the facts. Stickley, 53 S.W.3d at 562. On balance, both parties' statement of facts, especially when taken together, give an immediate and complete understanding of the facts, and while neither side may be entirely unbiased, their statements are not inflammatory.

The City also complains that Mr. Woodson's points relied on are noncompliant with Rule 84.04(d). The points relied on should "state briefly and concisely what actions or rulings of the court are challenged and why, in the context of the case, the legal reasons identified support the claim of reversible error." Stickley, 53 S.W.3d at 562. Mr. Woodson has two points relied on, attempting to treat one as related to the grant of summary judgment and one as related to collateral estoppel. But both of his points contain multiple issues, when each point should contain only one issue. Lamar Adver. of Mo., Inc., v. McDonald, 19 S.W.3d 743, 745 (Mo.App. S.D.2000). A party cannot group multiple contentions about different issues together into one point relied on.⁵ In the Interest...