Golden Poultry, Inc. v. Mears
Golden Poultry, Inc. v. Mears
Opinion of the Court
Annie Sue Mears sued Golden Poultry, Inc., for workers’ compensation benefits for injuries she claimed to have received during the course of her employment. After an ore tenus hearing, the trial judge entered an order on May 8, 1997, finding that Mears suffered from bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome as a result of her employment. On May 29 1997, Mears filed a “motion for amended findings,” contending that the determination of a 19% impairment of the body as a whole, which the judge had found, was insufficient because, she argued, it failed to accurately reflect her diminished earning capacity. The motion was filed within 30 days of the final judgment and it sought to amend the final judgment; therefore, we construe this motion as one filed pursuant to Rule 52(b), Ala.R.Civ.P.
The amended orders dated October 10, 1997, and October 14, 1997, were void because the trial court, on August 27, 1997, had lost jurisdiction to enter an order in the case. Golden Poultry filed a notice of appeal on February 23, 1998. Because the trial court’s judgment became final on August 27, 1997, the notice of appeal is untimely; it came well beyond the 42 days allowed for an appeal. The timely filing of an appeal is a jurisdictional act, and an untimely appeal must be dismissed. Rudd v. Rudd, 467 So.2d 964 (Ala.Civ.App. 1985). The purported amendments to the judgment entered on May 8, 1997, are void, and the appeal from that judgment is due to be dismissed as untimely.
DISMISSED.
. A second "motion for amended findings” was filed by Mears on June 26, 1997. This subsequent Rule 52(b) motion filed by Mears did not extend the time for appeal from the final judgment.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.