Kentucky Court of Justice
Kentucky Court of Appeals to hear oral arguments March 13 in Mount Sterling

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The Kentucky Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in three cases Thursday, March 13, at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Mount Sterling. The proceedings are open to the public.

A three-judge panel consisting of Judge Glenn E. Acree of Lexington, Judge Janet L. Stumbo of Prestonsburg and Senior Judge John W. Graves of Paducah will hear arguments beginning at 9:30 a.m. EDT in the Circuit Courtroom of the Montgomery County Courthouse at 1 Court St. in Mount Sterling.

A case docket containing summaries of the cases the panel will hear is below. 

Mount Sterling Docket
Thursday, March 13, 2008

9:30 AM    2007CA000977 
                TONY MESSER ET AL. v MONA ROBINSON

Summary: Civil; Personal Injury: Retail store and store manager appeal judgment after bench trial awarding approximately $200,000 to Appellee as compensation for psychological injury when detained after unintentionally leaving store with unpaid merchandise.

Clay County – Judge R. Cletus Maricle
Appellants’ Attorney: Robert S. Walker III
Appellee’s Attorney: R. Scott Madden

10:15 AM    2007CA000376 AND 2007CA000499
                  JERRY WOLLUM, M.D. ET AL. v LISA HILLMAN ET AL.

Summary: Civil; Appeal from plaintiff’s verdict in medical malpractice case; issues include denial of directed verdict, evidentiary rulings and jury misconduct.

Bell County – Judge James L. Bowling Jr.
Appellants’ Attorney: Kimberley S. Naber, Richard Paul Schiller Jr., Gerald R. Toner and Katherine K. Vesely
Appellees’ Attorney: Bruce Clark Batten II and Stephen M. O’Brien

11:00 AM   2007CA000699 AND 2007CA000736
                  KENTUCKY ASSOCIATED GENERAL CONTRACTORS SELF-INSURANCE FUND v
                  MUSIC CONSTRUCTION, INC.

Summary: Civil; Appeal from order dismissing action for failure to state a claim. Can workers’ Comp carrier recover payments of safety violation award from insured employer under terms of insurance contract?

Montgomery County – Judge Beth Lewis Maze
Appellant’s Attorney: Douglas A. U’Sellis
Appellee’s Attorney: Elaina Lell Holmes

Kentucky Court of Appeals
Nearly all cases heard by the Kentucky Court of Appeals come to it on appeal from a lower court. If a case is tried in Circuit Court or District Court and the losing parties involved are not satisfied with the outcome, they may ask for a higher court to review the correctness of the trial court’s decision. Some cases, such as criminal case acquittals and divorces, may not be appealed. In a divorce case, however, child custody and property rights decisions may be appealed. Cases are not retried in the Court of Appeals. Only the record of the original court trial is reviewed, with attorneys presenting the legal issues to the court for a decision.

Fourteen judges, two elected from seven appellate court districts, serve on the Court of Appeals. The judges are divided into panels of three to review and decide cases, with the majority determining the decision. The panels do not sit permanently in one location, but travel about the state to hear cases.

Administrative Office of the Courts
The Administrative Office of the Courts in Frankfort supports the activities of 4,000 Kentucky Court of Justice employees, including the elected offices of justices, judges and circuit court clerks. As the fiscal agent for the state court system, the AOC prepares a biennial budget draft and executes the Judicial Branch budget.