Qualchoice, Inc. v. John Doe Ins. Co., 91309 (1-29-2009)
Qualchoice, Inc. v. John Doe Ins. Co., 91309 (1-29-2009)
Opinion of the Court
{¶ 3} Civ. R. 10(D)(1) states:
{¶ 4} "When any claim or defense is founded on an account or other written instrument, a copy of the account or written instrument must be *Page 4 attached to the pleading. If the account or written instrument is not attached, the reason for the omission must be stated in the pleading."
{¶ 5} In Fletcher v. Univ. Hosp. of Cleveland,
{¶ 6} "Because there is no language in Civ. R. 10(D)(1) that the account or written instrument is required to establish the adequacy of the complaint, any failure to attach the required copies is properly addressed by a motion for a more definite statement under Civ. R. 12(E). In short, a party can still plead a prima facie case in such circumstances even without attaching the account or written agreement to the complaint. Thus, the complaint will survive a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim. Point Rental Co. v. Posani (1976),
{¶ 7} State Auto did not file a motion for a more definite statement under Civ. R. 12(E). Consistent with Fletcher, we find the court erred by granting judgment on the pleadings due to QualChoice's failure to attach a copy of the insurance policy to its complaint.
{¶ 9} It does not appear that the court intended to grant summary judgment as argued by State Auto. The court speaks through its journal.Gaskins v. Shiplevy,
{¶ 10} The court's judgment entry states:
{¶ 11} "Plaintiffs motion for summary judgment, filed 2/1/08, is denied. Plaintiffs motion to strike the request for admissions, filed 2/11/08, is denied. *Page 6 Defendant State Auto Insurance Co.'s motion for judgment on the pleading [sic], filed 2/1/08, is granted. Final."
{¶ 12} There is no language purporting to grant sumary judgment. The absence of any language referencing summary judgment is telling because the court denied QualChoice's cross-motion for summary judgment. The issue of summary judgment had been joined by State Auto in its motion for judgment on the pleadings, so if the court intended to base its judgment on Civ. R. 56, it could have so stated. Absent an affirmative basis for concluding that the court intended to grant State Auto's motion for summary judgment, we are constrained to construe the court's judgment entry as being based solely on its stated ground of judgment on the pleadings. We therefore sustain QualChoice's assignments of error.
{¶ 13} This cause is reversed and remanded for proceedings consistent with this opinion.
It is therefore ordered that said appellant recover of said appellee its costs herein taxed.
It is ordered that a special mandate be sent to said court to carry this judgment into execution.
A certified copy of this entry shall constitute the mandate pursuant to Rule 27 of the Rules of Appellate Procedure. *Page 7
CHRISTINE T. McMONAGLE, P.J., and FRANK D. CELEBREZZE, JR., J., CONCUR.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Qualchoice, Inc. v. John Doe Insurance Co.
- Cited By
- 2 cases
- Status
- Unpublished