Idaho Supreme Court - Civil Decisions 2015
Date: December 29, 2015
Docket Number: 41990
Justia Opinion Summary: Charles and Gail Houpt appealed a district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Wells Fargo Bank and First American Title Company (FATCO). In March 1993, the Houpts executed a promissory note to the American…
Date: December 23, 2015
Docket Number: 41514
Justia Opinion Summary: John Wickel appealed a district court’s grant of summary judgment dismissing his claims for medical malpractice against Dr. David Chamberlain. Wickel sought treatment from Dr. Chamberlain for internal and external…
Date: December 23, 2015
Docket Number: 42191
Justia Opinion Summary: Roger Gordon brought an action against Shannon Hedrick to establish custody and a parenting time schedule for M.H., a minor child. Gordon and Hedrick were in a relationship that began sometime in early 2010 and lasted…
Date: December 22, 2015
Docket Number: 41994
Justia Opinion Summary: Kelli Sevy sustained a work-related injury on October 31, 2006, and contended that she was totally and permanently disabled. The Industrial Commission found that Sevy failed to meet her burden of establishing total and…
Date: December 22, 2015
Docket Number: 42511
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2012, Rayland Brown was charged by indictment with the felony crime of forcible sexual penetration by use of a foreign object. On the second day of Brown’s jury trial, he and the State agreed to a written plea…
Date: December 15, 2015
Docket Number: 41887
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff-appellant Jeffrey Huber brought this action against his former employer, Lightforce USA, Inc. (“LFUSA”), for breach of contract and failure to pay wages. Huber’s claims centered on two employment agreements: a…
Date: November 25, 2015
Docket Number: 42473
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2013, claimant Scott Chadwick filed a complaint with the Industrial Commission seeking benefits under the Worker’s Compensation Law from his employer, Multi-State Electric, LLC, and its surety, Idaho State Insurance…
Date: November 25, 2015
Docket Number: 42515
Justia Opinion Summary: In 1992, Todd Rich was indicted for felony rape, allegedly committed between November 1991 and January 1992; he pled guilty on August 19, 1992; and on October 23, 1992, the district court sentenced him to six years in…
Date: November 25, 2015
Docket Number: 43233
Justia Opinion Summary: The minor at issue here, H.T., was the child of John Doe II and Jane Doe. John Doe II and Jane Doe were married around March of 2002 and were divorced early the following summer. H.T. was born in 2002. John Doe II was…
Date: November 2, 2015
Docket Number: 41077
Justia Opinion Summary: This dispute related to a strip of land that was part of a cell tower site located in the City of Coeur d’Alene. Sherman Storage, LLC sued Global Signal Acquisitions II, LLC seeking to eject Global from that strip of…
Date: November 2, 2015
Docket Number: 42658
Justia Opinion Summary: Claimant Barbara Kelly was an employee of Blue Ribbon Linen Supply, Inc. when a cart rolled over her left foot. She filed for workers’ compensation benefits. Kelly sustained additional injuries in an automobile accident…
Date: October 15, 2015
Docket Number: 43074
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant, the Greater Boise Auditorium District, filed a petition for judicial confirmation (pursuant to Idaho Code section 7-1304) asking the district court for a determination that a lease the District intended to…
Date: September 30, 2015
Docket Number: 42125
Justia Opinion Summary: On September 17, 2011, Martin Hayes was seriously injured after stumbling on uneven ground hidden by grass while attending his grandson’s Pop Warner football game at the Plummer School Park, which was owned by the City…
Date: September 30, 2015
Docket Number: 42216
Justia Opinion Summary: In prior proceedings, the Idaho Supreme Court reversed the district court’s judgment in favor of The Golf Club at Black Rock (Golf Club) and its award of costs and attorney fees. This case was an appeal of the district…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 41113
Justia Opinion Summary: The Payette County Board of Commissioners approved a conditional rezone of a parcel of land from agricultural to industrial, subject to a development agreement, in connection with a project to build a nuclear power…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 41951
Justia Opinion Summary: On August 13, 2013, the Idaho Department of Labor (IDOL) mailed two Determinations of Overpayment and an Eligibility Determination to Mitchell Kennedy at the address he had provided when filing for unemployment benefits.…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 41956
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal from arose from proposed repairs and improvements to the City of Challis’ water distribution system. In 2013, the City initiated a judicial confirmation proceeding seeking approval to incur $3.2 million in…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 42018
Justia Opinion Summary: This case was an appeal of a district court order awarding attorney fees to Ascorp, Inc. d/b/a Debco Construction (Debco) against the Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) in a declaratory judgment action filed by ITD to…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 42161
Justia Opinion Summary: Defendant Dennis Sallaz and Defendants-counterclaimants Glenn Trefren and Tradesman Contractors and Construction, LLC, (collectively “Appellants”) appealed the district court’s holding they could not recover breach of…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 42237
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2004 when he was sixteen years old, claimant Terence Fairchild worked for Kentucky Fried Chicken as a cook. While carrying garbage to a dumpster, he slipped on ice and fell onto a concrete barrier, striking his knees.…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 42296
Justia Opinion Summary: For many years, Idaho County had contracted for solid waste disposal services with Walco, Inc., and Simmons Sanitation Service, Inc., (Simmons Sanitation), with each entity covering a different portion of the county. In…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 42417
Justia Opinion Summary: This lawsuit arose out of a fatal helicopter crash that occurred on August 31, 2010, in Kamiah, Idaho. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game had contracted with Leading Edge Aviation, LLC, to fly two Department employees…
Date: September 25, 2015
Docket Number: 43152
Justia Opinion Summary: Father appealed a magistrate court's judgment terminating his parental rights to Child. Mother brought a petition for termination of Father’s parental rights. Following trial, the court granted Mother’s petition, finding…
Date: September 10, 2015
Docket Number: 43169
Justia Opinion Summary: The Coeur d’Alene Tribe (Tribe) petitioned the Idaho Supreme Court for a Writ of Mandamus to compel the Secretary of State to certify Senate Bill 1011 (S.B. 1011) as law. On March 30, 2015, both the Senate and the House…
Date: September 4, 2015
Docket Number: 42243
Justia Opinion Summary: Gooding County appealed the district court’s decision reversing the Gooding County Board of Commissioners’s (BOCC) decision affirming the denial of a third-party medical indigency application. In 2013, Saint Alphonsus…
Date: August 27, 2015
Docket Number: 42189
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose out of the claims of several men who joined Boy Scout troops when they were children and were allegedly sexually abused by their scout leaders. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS Church)…
Date: August 24, 2015
Docket Number: 42112
Justia Opinion Summary: Jessica and Eric Kawamura married in Las Vegas. They concealed their marriage from their families for one year before having a “marriage” ceremony, which was attended by family members. During the course of their…
Date: August 20, 2015
Docket Number: 40625
Justia Opinion Summary: This case arose out of a failed development project undertaken by BRN Development, Inc. in Coeur d’Alene. The project was for the development of a high-end 325-unit residential and golf course community on the west side…
Date: August 20, 2015
Docket Number: 41956
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal from Custer County relates to proposed repairs and improvements to the City of Challis’ (the City) water distribution system. In 2013, the City initiated a judicial confirmation proceeding seeking approval to…
Date: July 23, 2015
Docket Number: 41679
Justia Opinion Summary: The State appealed a district court judgment denying the its motion to vacate portions of a Stipulated Partial Settlement and Award entered by an arbitration panel. This case arose from the 1998 Tobacco Master Settlement…
Date: July 23, 2015
Docket Number: 42173
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal arose out of a district court’s decision to affirm a magistrate court’s order granting Michelle Campbell relief on her breach of contract claim. This case stemmed from an employment offer Parkway Surgery…
Date: July 22, 2015
Docket Number: 41898
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Monica Garner, and respondent Christopher Garner had two children prior to their divorce in 2010. They were both represented by counsel in that action and entered into a stipulation addressing the terms of…
Date: July 17, 2015
Docket Number: 42614
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Mike Von Jones arranged to hunt big game in Zimbabwe, Africa, with HHK Safaris (Pvt) Ltd. Jones went on the hunt and received an invoice for $26,040.00 from Respondent Safaris Unlimited LLC. Jones refused to…
Date: July 16, 2015
Docket Number: 41451
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant, Stilwyn, Inc., brought suit against the Respondents stating nine claims for relief arising out of a failed transaction to purchase an interest in a loan. The district court dismissed those claims, holding that…
Date: July 16, 2015
Docket Number: 41742
Justia Opinion Summary: Mark Colafranceschi brought this action for defamation and professional malpractice against Shawn Briley and Ashley Robinson after a magistrate court appointed Robinson to perform child custody evaluations in two…
Date: July 16, 2015
Docket Number: 42384
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2012, a fire destroyed three buildings and related equipment that were owned by Jackson Hop, LLC, and were used to dry hops, to process and bale hops, and to store hop bales. The buildings were insured by Farm Bureau…
Date: July 14, 2015
Docket Numbers: 41397, 41398
Justia Opinion Summary: This case consolidated two appeals from district court. The first case arose from the Idaho Outfitters and Guides Licensing Board’s decision to terminate A.T. “Sandy” Podsaid’s guide license in late 2008, under the terms…
Date: July 13, 2015
Docket Number: 42092
Justia Opinion Summary: This was a case of misappropriation of trade secrets case arising out of a dispute between two competing businesses providing spa and salon services in Pocatello: La Bella Vita, LLC (La Bella Vita) and Eikova Salon and…
Date: July 7, 2015
Docket Number: 42589
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Kevin Stokes employed Respondent Sohar Chavez as a part-time irrigator on Stokes's farm. During the course of his employment, Chavez was injured when his finger slipped into the chain of a motor on an…
Date: June 30, 2015
Docket Number: 42372
Justia Opinion Summary: John Doe, a Washington resident and registered sex offender in Washington, sought a declaratory judgment in Idaho as to whether he could be required to register with the Idaho Sex Offender Registry because of his…
Date: June 24, 2015
Docket Number: 42821
Justia Opinion Summary: John Doe has a long history of drug use, and a somewhat troubled family history. He started using methamphetamine in his early teens and has continued using methamphetamine consistently for the past twenty-plus years.…
Date: June 23, 2015
Docket Number: 41868
Justia Opinion Summary: TracFone Wireless, Inc. was a non-facilities-based commercial mobile radio service provider (a pure wireless reseller) that provided prepaid wireless telecommunications services. It desired to be designated as an…
Date: June 23, 2015
Docket Number: 42165
Justia Opinion Summary: Judy and Dennis Charney were divorced in March 2012. In May, Dennis commenced proceedings against Judy alleging multiple counts of contempt for allegedly violating provisions of the property settlement agreement, which…
Date: June 22, 2015
Docket Number: 41679
Justia Opinion Summary: The State of Idaho appealed a district court judgment denying its motion to vacate portions of a Stipulated Partial Settlement and Award entered by an arbitration panel. This case stemmed from the 1998 Tobacco Master…
Date: June 22, 2015
Docket Number: 41825
Justia Opinion Summary: The Federal National Mortgage Association (“FNMA”) purchased Russell Hafer’s home at a non-judicial foreclosure sale. FNMA filed an eviction suit when Russell and his wife, Sandra, refused to vacate. The Hafers claimed…
Date: June 22, 2015
Docket Number: 41972
Justia Opinion Summary: Richard Pines, D.O. appealed the district court’s decision on a disciplinary order of the Idaho Board of Medicine. The Board brought disciplinary proceedings against Pines following reports that he had induced young men…
Date: June 22, 2015
Docket Number: 42192
Justia Opinion Summary: Virgil Adams appealed a district court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of Kimberley One Townhouse Owner’s Association, Inc. Adams purchased a townhouse, subject to a declaration of covenants, conditions, and…
Date: June 22, 2015
Docket Number: 42521
Justia Opinion Summary: Todd Hamilton died in an automobile accident while employed by Alpha Services, LLC. The Idaho Industrial Commission found that the accident arose out of and in the course of Hamilton’s employment and determined that…
Date: May 28, 2015
Docket Number: 42675
Justia Opinion Summary: Doe and C.C.’s mother (Mother) are the biological parents of C.C., who was born in 2008. Doe, Mother, and C.C. are all members of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the Fort Hall Reservation (Tribes). Doe and Mother were…
Date: May 22, 2015
Docket Number: 42175
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center submitted third party medical indigency applications on behalf of two patients. Respondent Elmore County and the Board of Elmore County Commissioners denied the…
Date: May 21, 2015
Docket Number: 41178
Justia Opinion Summary: At the heart of this appeal was a judgment resolving a dispute between two neighbors. In 1994, defendants Eric and Rosalynn Wurmlinger built their home in the Park Wood Place subdivision in Post Falls, on a lot next to…
Date: May 21, 2015
Docket Number: 41615
Justia Opinion Summary: Plaintiff-appellant Gary Holdaway filed suit against Broulim’s Supermarket, alleging that a titanium screw implanted in his leg was fractured when an automatic door at Broulim’s malfunctioned and closed on the leg.…
Date: May 21, 2015
Docket Number: 42053
Justia Opinion Summary: This is an appeal from a judgment dismissing the plaintiff’s claims seeking to recover damages resulting from being bitten by a police dog when she was mistaken for a burglar. On appeal, Plaintiff argued that “[t]he…
Date: May 21, 2015
Docket Number: 42093
Justia Opinion Summary: James and Barbara Hilliard (Vendors) owned a farm in Owyhee County with approximately 3,000 acres of farmable land. They executed written leases of the best farm ground to various farmers who grew row crops. They orally…
Date: April 23, 2015
Docket Number: 42220
Justia Opinion Summary: Claimant Gina Poledna was employed by Thorne Research, Inc. (Employer). Her work required repetitive tasks, and over time she began experiencing pain in her wrists. She saw a physician who diagnosed her as having…
Date: April 23, 2015
Docket Number: 42700
Justia Opinion Summary: John Doe and his wife had two children born during their marriage. They later divorced, and the children’s mother died from strangulation in 2011. Doe was arrested and charged with murder in connection with her death. He…
Date: April 21, 2015
Docket Number: 42588
Justia Opinion Summary: Appellant Matthew Lamont and Respondent Krissy Lamont were married and have two minor children. After the divorce, Krissy was granted primary physical custody of the children, and until recently Krissy and Matthew…
Date: April 7, 2015
Docket Number: 41524
Justia Opinion Summary: Elmore County’s decided to terminate employee, plaintiff-appellant Cherri Nix, without providing her a pre-termination hearing pursuant to the Elmore County Personnel Policy (ECPP). Nix filed suit alleging, among other…
Date: April 1, 2015
Docket Number: 41583
Justia Opinion Summary: The issue this case presented for the Supreme Court's review centered on respondents Daryl and Linda Mullinix's right to use appellant Killgore's Salmon River Fruit Co.'s pipeline to convey water from Joe Creek. Both…
Date: March 3, 2015
Docket Number: 41683
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal stems from an arbitration decision regarding Peggy Cedillo's underinsured motorist insurance policy with Farmers Insurance Company of Idaho, and damages for injuries she suffered in a motorcycle accident.…
Date: March 2, 2015
Docket Number: 41265
Justia Opinion Summary: The issue this case presented for the Supreme Court's review stemmed from attempts by the Water Users’ Association of the Broadford Slough and Rockwell Bypass Lateral Ditches, Inc. (Association) to collect assessments…
Date: February 27, 2015
Docket Number: 41467
Justia Opinion Summary: LuAnn Shubert fell and injured her lower back while working at a Macy’s store. She appealed the Idaho Industrial Commission’s order holding that she was: (1) medically stable on November 21, 2007; (2) not entitled to…
Date: February 26, 2015
Docket Number: 41316
Justia Opinion Summary: The City of Hayden provided sewer service to the residents living in the City and to some persons living outside the City. To do so, the City entered into a joint powers agreement with the Hayden Area Regional Sewer…
Date: February 26, 2015
Docket Number: 41452
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2010, Duane Mueller filed this action against Carolyn Hill, Kevin Thompson, Philomena Keys, and Northwest Shelter Systems, LLC (a company owned by Kevin Thompson and Philomena Keys), to recover damages for trespass…
Date: February 26, 2015
Docket Number: 41454
Justia Opinion Summary: The Nampa Education Association was the local education organization representing teachers within Nampa School District No. 131 for the 2012-13 school year. The Association and the School District attempted…
Date: February 26, 2015
Docket Number: 41600
Justia Opinion Summary: Thomas and Rebecca Arnold appealed the grant of summary judgment in favor of the City of Stanley. In 2012, the City provided notice to the Arnolds (and other interested parties) of the date and time for three public…
Date: February 26, 2015
Docket Number: 41668
Justia Opinion Summary: The Board of Tax Appeals' (the BTA) denied appellant Jayo Development, Inc.'s application for a business inventory property tax exemption. In 2012, Jayo Development applied for a property tax exemption pursuant to Idaho…
Date: February 26, 2015
Docket Number: 41846
Justia Opinion Summary: Sarah Chitwood was friends with Marjorie Ellmaker. In 2003, Chitwood contacted an attorney to draft a durable power of attorney, naming Ellmaker as her attorney-in-fact. She later had the attorney draft a will. At that…
Date: February 26, 2015
Docket Number: 42141
Justia Opinion Summary: This case was brought before a magistrate court as a request for modification of the child custody arrangement of the parties' four children. Hilary Firmage (formerly, Snow) sought sole custody and permission to…
Date: February 11, 2015
Docket Number: 40168
Justia Opinion Summary: HJ Grathol ("Grathol") appealed a district court judgment awarding Grathol $675,000 in just compensation from the Idaho Transportation Department ("ITD"). ITD acted to condemn 16.314 acres to improve U.S. Highway 95.…
Date: February 10, 2015
Docket Number: 41214
Justia Opinion Summary: 917 Lusk, LLC appealed the Boise City Council's decision to grant a conditional use permit to Royal Boulevard Associates, LP to build an apartment complex. Royal's predecessor in interest applied for permission to build…
Date: February 6, 2015
Docket Number: 41745
Justia Opinion Summary: Because no final judgment dissolving the marriage and no judgment regarding custody had ever been entered in this divorce action during the four-year period after the divorce trial, the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal…
Date: February 4, 2015
Docket Number: 41501
Justia Opinion Summary: Respondents Alan and Marilyn Golub obtained a judgment against appellants and recorded the judgment. Kirk-Hughes Development, LLC (KHD), owned a parcel of real property in the county and therefore the judgment…
Date: February 2, 2015
Docket Number: 40474
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal arose from three mechanic’s liens that Keith Sims, dba Kasco of Idaho, LLC (“Sims”) filed on property that Dan Jacobson, Sage Holdings, LLC, Steven G. Lazar, the Mitchell A. Martin and Karen C. Martin Family…
Date: January 30, 2015
Docket Number: 41505
Justia Opinion Summary: The issue this case presented for the Supreme Court's review centered on a dispute between two creditors as to whose claim against their debtor's property has priority. Respondents Alan and Marilyn Golub recorded a…
Date: January 26, 2015
Docket Number: 41338
Justia Opinion Summary: In 2009, Mosell Equities filed this action against Berryhill & Company and Mr. and Mrs. Berryhill (collectively "Berryhill"). The complaint alleged that Mosell Equities had loaned money to Berryhill and that it had…
Date: January 26, 2015
Docket Number: 42442
Justia Opinion Summary: Jane Doe’s three-year-old son was found wandering in a truck stop parking lot, where trucks were entering and leaving. He had walked from a recreational vehicle 1.9 miles away, where Jane Doe and her boyfriend were…
Date: January 23, 2015
Docket Number: 41448
Justia Opinion Summary: This case concerned three small, adjacent parcels of land in Bear Lake County which lined up in a north to south direction and are bordered by State Highway 89 on the west and Bear Lake on the east. In 1998, the northern…
Date: January 23, 2015
Docket Number: 41523
Justia Opinion Summary: Claimant-appellant Terri Boyd-Davis filed for unemployment compensation on January 27, 2013, and began receiving benefits. IDOL claims to have mailed an "online review letter" to Boyd-Davis' listed address on March 6,…
Date: January 23, 2015
Docket Number: 41584
Justia Opinion Summary: This case stemmed from the Board of County Commissioners for Fremont County's efforts to prepare an official county road map that complied with Idaho Code section 40-202. The Board adopted an Official Fremont County Road…
Date: January 23, 2015
Docket Number: 41991
Justia Opinion Summary: Joan Thrall appealed an Idaho Industrial Commission decision denying her unemployment benefits. The Commission concluded that Thrall was not entitled to benefits because she voluntarily resigned from St. Luke's Regional…
Date: January 23, 2015
Docket Number: 42529
Justia Opinion Summary: Jane Doe appealed an order terminating her parental rights to her son, TSD. Because TSD was an "Indian child" as defined by the Indian Child Welfare Act, the magistrate court was required to make findings in addition to…
Date: January 21, 2015
Docket Number: 41269
Justia Opinion Summary: This appeal centered on the attempted foreclosure of two mechanic's liens on property encumbered by deeds of trust. In "ParkWest Homes, LLC v. Barnson," 302 P.3d 18 (2013) (ParkWest II), the Idaho Supreme Court held that…
Date: January 9, 2015
Docket Number: 41663
Justia Opinion Summary: Husband and wife Walter and A.K. Lienhart Minnick sued the law firm Hawley Troxell Ennis and Hawley, LLP (Hawley Troxell), alleging negligence in rendering services in connection with a real estate development project.…
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