Price v. Miller
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IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE IN AND FOR KENT COUNTY LYNN PRICE, Plaintiff Below, Appellee. v. CATHERINE C. MILLER, Defendant Below, Appellant, : : : : : : : : : : : : C.A. No. 02-08-0102AP : Submitted: December 9, 2002 Decided: December 9, 2002 Decision on appeal from the Justice of the Peace Court Plaintiff s civil action is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Lynn Price, 4050 Holletts Corner Road, Clayton, Delaware 19938, Plaintiff BelowAppellee, Pro Se. Catherine C. Miller, 445 E. Denneys Road, Dover, Delaware 19901, Defendant BelowAppellant, Pro Se. In this civil appeal from the Justice of the Peace Court, the plaintiff has filed a replevin action for the repossession of a mobile home from the defendant. Because the defendant is an occupant of the premises pursuant to a conditional sales contract, she is treated as a tenant under 25 Del. C. Sec. 5102 (11). Since the defendant is a tenant this case is governed by the landlord-tenant code. The plaintiff must proceed by an action for summary possession and this court has no jurisdiction over such a proceeding. The relevant facts are as follows: On July 11, 2002 the plaintiff filed a civil action for a writ of replevin in the Justice of the Peace Court #16. After a trial on August 9, 2002, the Justice of the Peace entered judgment in behalf of the plaintiff for possession of the trailer. On August 23, 2002 the defendant filed a praecipe and notice of appeal with this court. She also filed a motion to proceed in forma pauperis, and this motion was granted by the court. The plaintiff filed a photocopy of the complaint that she filed with the Justice of the Peace Court, but she has not yet filed a complaint with this court. In the court below, the plaintiff alleged that she was selling a mobile home to the defendant for the sum of $5000.00 pursuant to a conditional sales contract. The defendant made a $3000.00 down payment and thereafter was to make ten payments of $200.00 each month commencing on January 10, 2002. However, the defendant has defaulted in her payments and the plaintiff has filed a complaint in replevin for the repossession of the mobile home. The seminal question is whether this court has jurisdiction to hear this case? Although the plaintiff has brought a replevin action to obtain possession of the mobile home, I conclude that this civil action case must be brought under the landlord-tenant code. This code determines all rights and remedies of the parties. 25 Del. C. Sec. 5103. 25 Del. C. Sec. 5102 (11) defines a tenant in pertinent part as follows: An occupant of any premises pursuant to a conditional sales agreement. Pursuant to this section and Sec. 5103 the plaintiff cannot file a complaint in replevin to obtain possession of the mobile home. The plaintiff s sole remedy is to file an action for summary possession in the Justice of the Peace Court. I have previously held that the Court of Common Pleas has no jurisdiction to consider an action for summary possession. Goldinger Brothers v. Warren, C.A. No. 0025-04-78, Trader, J. (1978). Since this court has no jurisdiction to consider an action for summary possession, the above-captioned civil action is hereby dismissed. IT IS SO ORDERED. ___________________________________ Merrill C. Trader Judge
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