PATRICK DONOHUE, et al. v. BABE RUTH BASEBALL, INC., et al.

 

NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE

APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION

SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY

APPELLATE DIVISION

DOCKET NO. A-5487-04T35487-04T3

PATRICK DONOHUE, GUARDIAN OF

PATRICK J. DONOHUE; MARY CAY

CARY, GUARDIAN OF ANDREW CARY;

JOHN CARTER, GUARDIAN OF CULLEN

CARTER; BOB GUTOWSKI, GUARDIAN

OF JOEY GUTOWSKI; AND KEVIN

ZACKMAN, GUARDIAN OF TAYLOR

ZACKMAN,

Plaintiffs-Respondents,

vs.

BABE RUTH BASEBALL, INC. and

STEVEN TELLEFESEN, PRESIDENT,

Defendants-Appellants.

__________________________________

 

Argued: June 13, 2006 - Decided June 30, 2006

Before Judges Conley and Cuff.

On appeal from the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, Mercer County, Docket No. L-1558-05.

Lewis G. Adler, argued the cause for appellants (Bruce C. Hasbrouck, on the brief).

Patrick Donohue argued the cause pro se.

PER CURIAM

This appeal concerns the eligibility of five players to participate in 2005 post-season competition on a nine through twelve-year-old All Star team. The eligibility issue concerned the players' residency.

Patrick J. Donohue, Andrew Cary, Cullen Carter, Joey Gutkowski, and Taylor Zackman resided in Bordentown and registered to play baseball with the Hamilton Little Lads. Each of the boys was selected to play on the nine through twelve-year-old All Star team that plays in post-season competition. Prior to the first post-season game, the boys were advised that they did not qualify to play because they did not reside within the geographic boundaries of the Hamilton Little Lads organization.

The boys, through their guardians, filed a verified complaint and sought and obtained an order to show cause with temporary restraints that permitted them to play until the return date of the order to show cause. Following an evidentiary hearing, Judge Smithson rendered an oral opinion in which he found that defendant Babe Ruth Baseball, Inc. and its president had waived the residency requirement for each of the challenged players. Therefore, he concluded that "[a]ll infant plaintiffs are deemed to have properly registered with the Hamilton Little Lads (Cal Ripken Baseball of Babe Ruth Baseball, Inc.) for the 2005 season." He also concluded that the five infant plaintiffs "qualified for post-season all-star competition as members of Hamilton Little Lads, they are to be rostered accordingly and may participate fully in all such competition."

The June 20, 2005 order is affirmed substantially for the reasons expressed by Judge Smithson in his June 20, 2005 oral opinion. The decision, which is applicable only to the 2005 post-season competition, is governed by the unique facts of the case and has no precedential value for other organizations or other players within the Hamilton Little Lads organization.

 
Affirmed.

Patrick Donohue, guardian of one of the respondents, filed a brief on behalf of all respondents. As a pro se, Mr. Donohue can only advance his and his son's position. See R. 1:21-1(a) ("a person not qualifying to practice . . . shall nonetheless be permitted to appear and prosecute or defend an action in any court of this State if the person (1) is a real party in interest to the action or the guardian of the party"); Kasharian v. Wilentz 93 N.J. Super. 479, 482 (App. Div.) ("nominal representatives or even active fiduciaries of the persons in beneficial interest, not themselves lawyers, should not be permitted to conduct legal proceedings in court involving the rights or liabilities of such persons without representation by attorneys duly qualified to practice law"), certif. denied, 48 N.J. 447 (1967).

(continued)

(continued)

3

A-5487-04T3

June 30, 2006