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Chambers v. Clayton Bank & Trust Co.
Citations: 145 So. 3d 1230; 2013 Miss. App. LEXIS 824; 2013 WL 6233370Docket: No. 2013-CP-00116-COA
Court: Court of Appeals of Mississippi; December 2, 2013; Mississippi; State Appellate Court
In November 2011, Bruce Chambers purchased a mobile home in Carthage, Mississippi, making a $7,500 down payment and financing the remainder through a retail-installment and security agreement with Clayton Bank, Trust Company, using the home as collateral. In October 2012, Clayton filed a complaint in Leake County Circuit Court, claiming Chambers was in default on his payments and seeking replevin for the home. Chambers responded by filing a motion to dismiss, which was denied, and the court subsequently granted Clayton's replevin request, requiring Chambers to post a $51,000 bond within fourteen days to stay execution. Chambers failed to post the bond, leading to the home being returned to Clayton. Chambers then appealed the decision, raising similar issues in a separate complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, which denied him relief and mandated arbitration for his claims. In the current appeal, Chambers contends that the circuit court wrongly granted replevin and neglected to consider relevant federal laws. However, Clayton argues that the issues are moot due to the district court's ruling. The court agrees with Clayton, resulting in the dismissal of Chambers's appeal. Chambers's appeal closely mirrors the claims he raised in his February 2013 complaint, which the district court addressed before ruling that the issues must be resolved through arbitration. A final judgment precludes relitigation of claims that were or could have been raised, as established in Robinson v. Hosemann. Consequently, any questions about replevin or federal law applicability must be pursued through an appeal of the district court's order, rather than through the circuit court. Additionally, the appeal is deemed moot because the actual controversy—regarding the mobile home—has been resolved; Clayton has already taken possession and disposed of the mobile home. As a result, any judgment on the merits would not benefit Chambers or harm Clayton. Therefore, the appeal is dismissed as moot, with all costs assigned to the appellant. The judges concurred, with some concurring partially without a separate opinion, and one judge not participating.