No. 24-824

Bernice M. Rutland v. Regions Bank, as Trustee of the William Hunter Rutland Family Trust

Lower Court: Mississippi
Docketed: 2025-02-04
Status: Denied
Type: Paid
Response WaivedRelisted (2)
Tags: chancery-court due-process fourteenth-amendment judicial-notice rule-56 summary-judgment
Key Terms:
DueProcess Immigration Privacy
Latest Conference: 2025-05-15 (distributed 2 times)
Question Presented (AI Summary)

Whether a Chancery Judge has jurisdiction to modify a final divorce order thirteen years after the original ruling, without a Rule 59 motion or appeal, and whether the Chancery Court abused its discretion in denying depositions and granting summary judgment

Question Presented (OCR Extract)

This case presents one of first impression and of national importance and significance because it conflicts with well-established rules and principles and conflicts with this Court and other federal and state courts. The Federal Rules of Evidence 201(e) and M.R.C.P. 201(e) both allow the party affected by taken Judicial Notice the Opportunity to be Heard, and Rule 56 Sum mary Judgement requires the moving party to meet its burden of production. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, All U.S. 317, 333 (1986) and The Fourteenth Amendment ’s Due Process clause. The case below has questions of first impression. 1. Whether a Chancery Judge has jurisdiction or authority to change the Final Order of another Chancery Judge, thirteen (13) years after the order was signed by both parties, their attorneys and the Chancery Judge in the divorce hearing, where there was no Rule 59 motion to amend and was never appealed and both parties were deceased. 2. Whether the Chancery Court abused its discre tion by denying defendants request for deposition of three (3) key witnesses, limiting Rule 56(f) relief to only producing relevant documents, preventing defend ant from putting on a complete defense, then taking Judicial Notice, and doing its own research to reach a conclusion of law when reconsidering a dispositive motion and granting summary judgement to plaintiff, denying defendant Rule 201(e) Opportunity to be Heard, and the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amend ment.

Docket Entries

2025-05-19
Rehearing DENIED.
2025-04-29
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 5/15/2025.
2025-04-18
Petition for Rehearing filed.
2025-03-24
Petition DENIED.
2025-02-26
DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 3/21/2025.
2025-02-11
Waiver of right of respondent Regions Bank to respond filed.
2025-01-15
2024-12-16
Application (24A489) granted by Justice Alito extending the time to file until January 18, 2025.
2024-12-10
Application (24A489) to extend further the time from January 3, 2025 to January 18, 2025, submitted to Justice Alito.
2024-11-19
Application (24A489) granted by Justice Alito extending the time to file until January 3, 2025.
2024-11-13
Application (24A489) to extend the time to file a petition for a writ of certiorari from November 19, 2024 to January 3, 2025, submitted to Justice Alito.

Attorneys

Bernice M. Rutland
Bernice Rutland — Petitioner
Bernice Rutland — Petitioner
Regions Bank
John H. DollarhideButler Snow LLP, Respondent
John H. DollarhideButler Snow LLP, Respondent