State of Louisiana, Used Motor Vehicle Commission VS Sundance Boats, Inc.
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STATE OF LOUISIANA COURT OF APPEAL FIRST CIRCUIT NO 2010 CA 0479 STATE OF LOUISIANA EX REL USED MOTOR VEHICLE COMMISSION VERSUS 79 SUNDANCE BOATS INC Judgment Rendered October 29 2010 On Appeal from the 22nd Judicial District Court In and for the Parish of St Tammany State of Louisiana Trial Court No 2009 14548 The Honorable Allison H Penzato Judge Presiding Robert W Hallack Attorney for Plaintiff Appellant Baton Rouge LA Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission Stephanie B Laborde Angela W Adolph Attorneys for Defendant Appellee Sundance Boats Inc Christina M Soileau Baton Rouge LA and Herschel C Adcock Sr Baton Rouge LA BEFORE CARTER C GAIDRY AND WELCH JJ J CARTER C J The Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission LUMVC appeals a judgment of the trial court sustaining a peremptory exception raising the objection of no right of action and dismissing its petition to make executory administrative adjudications of the Louisiana Recreational and Used Motor Vehicle Commission LRUMVC FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Prior to Acts 2009 No 403 Act 403 the jurisdiction and authority to license and regulate all recreational vehicles including boats were vested in the LRUMVC By Act 403 the Legislature renamed the LRUMVC the LUMVC by deleting Recreational and from the agency title and s transferred jurisdiction over new recreational vehicles to the Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission LMVC Thus the LUMVC now has authority over the used vehicle including used boats industry and the LMVC now has authority over the new vehicle including new boats industry See LSAR 32 LSAR 32 S 784 S 1254 After the effective date of Act 403 the LUMVC instituted suit against Sundance Boats Inc seeking to make executory certain adjudications of the LRUMVC entered prior to the effective date of Act 403 ordered Sundance to repurchase certain boats from a Louisiana dealer and assessed various monetary penalties and costs Sundance excepted to the petition arguing that the LUMVC has no right of action to make the orders of the LRUMVC executory The trial court agreed sustained the peremptory exception raising the objection of no right of action and dismissed the LUMVC s petition The LUMVC now appeals 2 DISCUSSION The function of the peremptory exception raising the objection of no right of action is to determine whether the plaintiff belongs to the class of persons to whom the law grants the cause of action asserted LSA C P art 927A Louisiana Bar Ass v Carr and Associates Inc 08 2114 6 n La App 1 Cir 5 15 So 158 165 writ denied 091627 La 09 8 3d 09 30 10 21 So 292 To prevail on the exception the defendant must 3d show that the plaintiff does not have an interest in the subject matter of the suit or legal capacity to proceed with the suit Teague v St Paul Fire and Marine Ins Co 061266 La App 1 Cir 4 10 So 806 847 writ 09 7 3d denied 091030 La 6 10 So 722 09 17 3d Sundance premises its argument on Act 403 transfer of authority s over new boat dealers to the LMVC However the orders seeking to be made executory specifically order payments to the LRUMVC The LRUMVC was not abolished by Act 403 Rather the LRUMVC name s was changed to the LUMVC Sundance is correct that jurisdiction over new boat dealers is presently vested in the LMVC However the orders at issue were validly entered by the LRUMVC and were not appealed Thus we find that the LUMVC as the successor of the LRUMVC has the right of action to seek enforcement of orders that order payment of funds to the LRUMVC CONCLUSION For the foregoing reasons the judgment of the trial court sustaining the peremptory exception raising the objection of no right of action and dismissing the LUMVC petition is reversed Costs of this appeal are s 3 assessed to Sundance Boats Inc This matter is remanded to the trial court for further proceedings REVERSED AND REMANDED
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