| Massie v. Minor, No. 5-98-0598 5th District, 30 August 1999 |
| LAWRENCE T. MASSIE, Executor of the Estate of Michael P. Massie, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. PAUL S. MINOR, Defendant-Appellant. | Appeal from the Circuit Court of Marion County. No. 97-LM-213 Honorable David L. Sauer, Judge, presiding. | |
| MINOR AND ASSOCIATES, Petitioner-Appellant, v. LAWRENCE T. MASSIE, Executor of the Estate of Michael P. Massie, Respondent-Appellee. | Appeal from the Circuit Court of Marion County. No. 98-LM-29 Honorable David L. Sauer, Judge, presiding. |
JUSTICE WELCH delivered the opinion of the court:
This appeal involves a question of the enforceability of a judgment rendered by a trial court in Mississippi and whether it must be given full faith and credit by an Illinois court. The appeal involves two separate actions: (1) a suit brought in Illinois for money due on a written contract, including a motion to dismiss based on the res judicata effect of a Mississippi judgment (cause no. 97-LM-213), and (2) a petition to register the Mississippi judgment pursuant to the Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act (735 ILCS 5/12-650 et seq. (West 1996)) (cause no. 98-LM-29). These actions were consolidated in the trial court. The facts are as follows.
On September 24, 1997, Michael P. Massie(1), an Illinois resident, filed suit in the circuit court of Marion County, Illinois, against Paul S. Minor, a Mississippi attorney, to recover monies due for services rendered on a written contract. Massie was a railroad investigative consultant, and Minor is an attorney in Mississippi who had retained Massie as an expert witness in a wrongful-death action against a railroad. The written contract is attached to Massie's complaint. Among its provisions is the following: "If legal action is required by Michael P. Massie to collect fees or expenses advanced or to resolve any dispute, then the parties agree that Marion County, Illinois[,] shall be the proper venue for that legal action." Minor was properly served with a summons in Mississippi.
On October 14, 1997, after being served with a summons in Massie's Illinois action, Minor filed suit against Massie in the county court of Hamilton County, Mississippi. The suit alleged that Massie had breached the contract between the parties, and Minor sought the return of monies paid to Massie, plus attorney fees, expenses, and costs. A copy of the contract sued upon was not attached to the complaint, and despite the venue provision in the contract, the complaint alleged that venue was proper in Hamilton County, Mississippi. The complaint did not inform the Mississippi court that an action on the same contract was already pending in Illinois.
Massie was served with a summons by certified mail, as permitted by the laws of the State of Mississippi. Rule 4(c)(5) of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure provides that a summons may be served on a person outside the state by certified mail, return receipt requested, and marked "restricted delivery." Service by certified mail is not permitted on a Mississippi resident unless that resident consents to such service.
According to his affidavit, Massie diligently attempted to retain counsel in time to appear and defend Minor's lawsuit but was unable to do so. On December 2, 1997, a default judgment was entered against Massie in the amount of $7,500 plus costs and interest.
On January 28, 1998, Minor filed in the circuit court of Marion County, Illinois, a motion to dismiss Massie's complaint based on the res judicata effect of the Mississippi judgment and the full faith and credit clause of the United States Constitution (U.S. Const., art. IV,