Yellow Cab Co. of Bloomington, Inc. v. Williams

• Decision Date: 30 December 1991
• Docket Number: No. 53A04-9012-CV-577,53A04-9012-CV-577
• Citation: 583 N.E.2d 774
• Parties: In the Matter of the YELLOW CAB COMPANY OF BLOOMINGTON, INC., Appellant (Plaintiff Below), v. Aline WILLIAMS and the Bloomington Human Rights Commission, Appellees (Defendants Below).
• Court: Indiana Appellate Court

Page 774

583 N.E.2d 774

In the Matter of the YELLOW CAB COMPANY OF BLOOMINGTON INC., Appellant (Plaintiff Below), v. Aline WILLIAMS and the Bloomington Human Rights Commission Appellees (Defendants Below).

No. 53A04-9012-CV-577.

Court of Appeals of Indiana Fourth District.

Dec. 30, 1991.

Edward F. McCrea, McCrea & McCrea, Bloomington, for appellant.

Earl R.C. Singleton, Joan Tupin-Crites and David Norville, Community Legal Clinic, Bloomington, for appellee, Aline Williams.

Barbara E. McKinney, Director, Bloomington Human Rights Com'n, Bloomington, for appellee, Bloomington Human Rights Com'n.

MILLER, Judge.

In this appeal, Yellow Cab makes a collateral attack on a Bloomington Human Rights Commission's order to pay damages to Aline Williams, an 88 year old Black woman, who suffered emotional distress when she was both denied the use of a taxi and victimized by the racial slurs of its driver. Yellow Cab's attempt at judicial review of the Commission's order was dismissed for failure to timely file the record of the proceedings with the trial court, and the dismissal was affirmed by this court. When the Commission sought to enforce the order through supplemental proceedings, Yellow Cab claimed the original order was void on its face, alleging the order, contrary to statute, included compensation for emotional distress for racial insult, an element which was held not includable in Indiana Civil Rights Commission v. Holman (1978), 177 Ind.App. 648, 380 N.E.2d 1281. ¹ The trial court rejected this collateral attack theory, as we do in this appeal. We also reject the Commission's request for attorney's fees based on a claim that the appeal is frivolous.

FACTS

Williams filed a racial discrimination complaint with the Commission against Yellow Cab Company of Bloomington, Inc., alleging that on April 3, 1988, when she attempted to take a cab to Easter Sunrise Services at her church, she was denied the use of the cab because of her race and the cab driver hurled racial insults at her. Originally, Yellow Cab did not respond to the complaint and after a hearing the Commission entered a default order finding the cab company had deprived Williams of equal access to public accommodations on the basis of race in violation of Bloomington Human Rights Ordinance Sec. 2.21.020 of the Bloomington Municipal Code and ordered corrective action. Yellow Cab sought to vacate the order and gain another hearing. After the second hearing, the Commission reached the same conclusion and ordered Yellow Cab to pay Williams $1,500 to compensate her for the emotional distress caused by the incident. The Commission also ordered Yellow Cab to take action to prevent this type of incident from recurring by posting signs in its cabs, training its drivers and implementing an affirmative action hiring policy. Yellow Cab filed a petition for judicial review with the Monroe Superior Court alleging, among other things, that the Commission had exceeded its statutory authority in awarding Williams damages for emotional distress. The trial court dismissed the petition because Yellow Cab failed to file a record of the Commission hearings within the thirty-day deadline required by Ind.Code 4-21.5-5-13(a). This Court affirmed the dismissal of Yellow Cab's petition for judicial review in a memorandum opinion (filed February 26, 1990), No. 53A01-8911-CV-477. Yellow Cab's petition for transfer was denied on June 6, 1990.

The Commission then filed a Petition for Civil Enforcement of its order, and the trial court ordered Yellow Cab to comply with the order and pay interest on the damage award. When Yellow Cab did not comply with the order, the Commission filed a Petition in Proceedings Supplemental to force Yellow Cab to pay the damage award pending appeal or post bond. On January 17, 1991, Yellow Cab agreed to comply with all terms of the Commission's final order with the exception of paying the damage award to Williams.

DECISION

Yellow Cab contends the trial court erred in 1) ordering the enforcement of the Commission's order and 2) finding its claim that the order was in excess of statutory authority was barred by the doctrine of res judicata. It argues that the doctrine does not apply when a party is collaterally attacking a judgment which is in violation of statutory law.

We disagree. There are four elements to res judicata: 1) the former judgment was issued by a court with jurisdiction, 2) that the matter now in issue was or might have been determined in the former suit, 3) the parties (or their privies) are identical, and 4) there was a judgment on the merits. Cox v. Indiana Subcontractors Ass'n, Inc. (1982), Ind.App., 441 N.E.2d 222, 225; Popp v. Hardy (1987), Ind.App., 508 N.E.2d 1282. ² It is not necessary that there be an actual trial for res judicata to apply. If the parties had a full legal opportunity to be heard on their respective claims but there is no actual hearing because a party misses a statute of limitations--or as is the case here, for a failure to comply with the statutory prerequisites--it is just as much a bar to further litigation as a judgment on the merits. Creech v. Town of Walkerton (1984), Ind.App., 472 N.E.2d 226.

Yellow Cab claims the second requirement (matter was or might have been determined in former suit) was not met because the issues are not identical. It claims that in this action the merits of the case are not at issue--and it is merely attacking the validity of a void and illegal judgment. It cites Collins v. Evansville State Hospital (1963), 134 Ind.App. 471, 189 N.E.2d 106, for the proposition that an administrative order will not be upheld if any statute, constitutional provision or rule of substantive or procedural law has been violated.

We first observe that Collins involved the direct appeal of a decision of the workman's compensation board, not a collateral attack. Furthermore, proceedings supplemental are considered a continuation of the underlying claim on the merits and, therefore, cannot be used to collaterally attack the underlying judgment. Koors v. Great Southwest Fire Insurance Co. (1989), Ind.App., 538 N.E.2d 259. Even assuming Yellow Cab may challenge the validity of the Commission's order, it must show that the judgment is void rather than merely defective or voidable. Mishler v. County of Elkhart (1989), Ind., 544 N.E.2d 149. A void judgment is one rendered by a court--or inferior tribunal--without jurisdiction of a particular case or the parties, as opposed to a voidable judgment which is capable of confirmation or ratification. Trook v. Lafayette Bank & Trust Co. (1991), Ind.App., 581 N.E.2d 941.

It has long been the law in Indiana that "if a tribunal possesses the power to determine cases of the general class to which the particular case belongs, it possesses subject matter jurisdiction to consider the particular case, absent specific and timely objections to the jurisdiction." Mishler, at 152, quoting Board of Trustees v. City of Ft. Wayne (1978), 268 Ind. 415, 423, 375 N.E.2d 1112, 1117. See also Indianapolis Railways, Inc. v. City of Indianapolis (1951), 229 Ind. 487, 98 N.E.2d 505, (the order of an administrative agency, acting within its jurisdiction and under color of law, is not subject to collateral attack where party failed to appeal from the order as provided by statute.)

In this case, the legislature has granted local governments the authority to create local human rights commissions. IC 22-9-1-12.1(b). The City of Bloomington has an ordinance designating the Commission authority to award compensatory damages to victims of unlawful discrimination in public accommodations. The enabling statute grants local commissions authority to investigate civil rights complaints, appoint hearing examiners, make findings and recommendations, issue orders requiring remedial action, and "[o]rder payment of actual damages, except that damages to be paid as a result of discriminatory practices relating to employment shall be limited to lost wages, salaries, commissions, or fringe benefits." IC 22-9-1-12.1(c)(8), (emphasis added). Thus, the Commission has the jurisdiction to determine whether there has been a civil rights violation and to award damages, and, even if its order is erroneous, it is not void and subject to collateral attack. See, e.g., Spencer v. McGonagle (1886), 107 Ind. 410, 8 N.E. 266, (a judgment of the court, having subject-matter jurisdiction, ordering the delivery of all property of an intestate married man to his widow, and not to her in trust for his minor children as provided by the statute then in effect, 1 Rev.St.1876, p. 411, Sec. 19, while palpably erroneous, was not void, and could not be collaterally attacked).

Next, Yellow Cab argues that the Civil Enforcement provisions in chapter 6 of the Administrative Adjudication Act, specifically IC 4-21.5-6-3(h), permits it to challenge the enforceability of the Commission's order on the basis that the Commission exceeded its statutory authority even though Yellow Cab failed to obtain a judicial review of the validity of the agency order in the first appeal. Ind.Code 4-21.5-6-1, et seq. establishes the manner in which an agency, or a party to the agency's order, may obtain enforcement of the agency order from the courts, and 4-21.5-6-3, describes how such action is commenced and dismissed. Section 3(h) provides:

"Except to the extent expressly authorized by law, a petition for civil enforcement may not request and the court may not grant, any monetary payment apart from taxable costs."

This section of the Act, IC 4-21.5-6-3(h), has never been interpreted and its terms are not well-defined. However, we do not agree with Yellow Cab's interpretation. Under the rules for statutory construction, the provisions of a statute must be read in context. Matter of Middlefork Watershed Conservancy (1987), Ind.App., 508 N.E.2d 574. This court will give deference to the legislative intent and, where that intent has not been...