JOHN A. HUMPHRESS, JR. V. HON. DOUGHLAS M. GEORGE, JUDGE, TAYLOR CIRCUIT COURT, ET AL.
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IMPORTANT NOTICE
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED OPINION
THIS OPINION IS DESIGNATED "NOT TO BE PUBLISHED."
PURSUANT TO THE RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
PROMULGATED BY THE SUPREME COURT, CR 76 .28(4)(C),
THIS OPINION IS NOT TO BE PUBLISHED AND SHALL NOT BE
CITED OR USED AS BINDING PRECEDENT IN ANY OTHER
CASE IN ANY COURT OF THIS STATE ; HOWEVER,
UNPUBLISHED KENTUCKY APPELLATE DECISIONS,
RENDERED AFTER JANUARY 1, 2003, MAY BE CITED FOR
CONSIDERATION BY THE COURT IF THERE IS NO PUBLISHED
OPINION THAT WOULD ADEQUATELY ADDRESS THE ISSUE
BEFORE THE COURT. OPINIONS CITED FOR CONSIDERATION
BY THE COURT SHALL BE SET OUT AS AN UNPUBLISHED
DECISION IN THE FILED DOCUMENT AND A COPY OF THE
ENTIRE DECISION SHALL BE TENDERED ALONG WITH THE
DOCUMENT TO THE COURT AND ALL PARTIES TO THE
ACTION .
RENDERED : OCTOBER 29, 2009
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of
JOHN A. HUMPHRESS, JR.
V.
APPELLANT
ON APPEAL FROM COURT OF APPEALS
CASE NO. 2008-CA-001639-OA
TAYLOR CIRCUIT COURT NO . 97-CI-00384
HON . DOUGHLAS M. GEORGE,
JUDGE, TAYLOR CIRCUIT COURT, ET AL.
APPELLEES
MEMORANDUM OPINION OF THE COURT
AFFIRMING
John A. Humphress, Jr. appeals as a matter of right from the Court of
Appeals disposition of this original action . Agreeing with the Court of Appeals
that Humphress has failed to satisfy the standard for the requested
extraordinary relief in the nature of prohibition and mandamus, we affirm .
Although the underlying Humphress marital dissolution action began in
1997 in Taylor Circuit Court and ended with this Court's denial of
discretionary review in 2004, Humphress subsequently has filed multiple postdissolution proceedings. The present appeal arises out of post-dissolution
orders entered in some of those proceedings.
In particular, Humphress submits that the Court of Appeals committed
reversible error in failing to grant both a writ of prohibition to prevent a
contempt hearing and a writ of mandamus requiring the Taylor Circuit Court
to hold hearings and to respond specifically to all motions filed by Humphress .
Citing generally Newell Enterprises, Inc . v. Bowling, 158 S .W.3d 750 (Ky.
2005), the unanimous appellate panel opined that Humphress has an adequate
remedy by appeal, if necessary, and further failed to satisfy the standard for
entitlement to the extraordinary writ remedy requested . We agree.
Although Humphress submits that his access to the courts has been
"chilled" by the threat of the possibility of contempt for filing frivolous motions,
he acknowledges the appealability of any such sanction. Neither is Humphress
entitled to the desired hearings on all of his many postjudgment motions, on
all of which upon our review of this record the circuit court has acted well
within its jurisdiction in attempting to achieve final resolution . In the order
entered on August 25, 2008, for example, the circuit court despite warnings
regarding future frivolous motions in orders entered in April of 2008 (denying
CR 52 .01, 52 .02, 59 .05, 59 .06 and 59 .07 motions by Humphress) and June of
2008 (denying motions by Humphress including one to appoint "a fence
watcher") was faced with motions for more definitive reasoning regarding denial
of a supersedeas bond despite improper surety and, further, criticizing the
court for not adequately advising Humphress "during every stage of the case."
We affirm the denial of the petition for writ.
Minton, C .J. ; Cunningham, Noble, Schroder, Scott, and Venters, JJ .,
sitting. All concur. Abramson, J., not sitting .
COUNSEL FOR APPELLANT AND APPELLEE, IDEAS IN ACTION, INC.,
REAL PARTY IN INTEREST:
Robert C. Bishop
P. O. Box 788
Elizabethtown, KY 42702-0788
COUNSEL FOR APPELLEE, HON. DOUGHLAS M. GEORGE, JUDGE,
TAYLOR CIRCUIT COURT :
Jack Conway
Attorney General of Kentuc
Lisa Kathleen Lang
Assistant Attorney General
Office of Attorney General
700 Capitol Avenue
Suite 118
Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
COUNSEL FOR APPELLEE, PATRICIA ANN HUMPHRESS,
REAL PARTY IN INTEREST:
Danny Butler
118 North Main Street
P. O. Box 250
Greensburg, KY 42743-0250
COUNSEL FOR APPELLEE, PHILIP GEORGE, REAL PARTY IN INTEREST,
SPECIAL MASTER COMMISSIONER :
Philip S . George, Jr.
113 West Main Street
Lebanon, KY 40033
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