All About Chancery Court: What You Need to Know
The Chancery Court is one of the two trial courts in Mississippi. The jurisdiction of the Chancery Court is what makes it unique from the Circuit Court – the other trial court. Mississippi is one of the few states that still has a trial court with jurisdiction over equity cases. In addition to the general equity jurisdiction, the Chancery Court also has jurisdiction over family matters, estates, and land disputes.
If you have a dispute over money or a business, you want to be in circuit court. If you have a dispute involving a divorce, child custody, estates, land, or other matters traditionally handled in Chancery Court, then obviously you want to be there. Equitable relief is a hallmark of Chancery Courts in Mississippi . The Chancery Courts have jurisdiction to grant any equitable relief that is not contrary to law. In the federal system, it would be called an equitable remedy. An example would be an injunction. Sometimes, Chancery Courts can grant remedies before a case has been decided, which is called a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction. I have seen Chancery Courts grant equitable relief like division of property, an issue on whether a person should be disqualified or suspended from a job, equitable division of a business, changes in child custody, reinstatement of a business to a board of directors, or an order requiring a person to fulfill an obligation.
Contact and Location Information for the Chancery Court
The Chancery Court in Tupelo, MS is located at the Garnett Pearson Chancellor’s Building inside the Lee County Courthouse complex. The address for the Chancery Court is 201 W. Jefferson St. Tupelo, MS 38804.
The phone number for the Chancery Clerk in Tupelo is (662) 841-9000. Besides the Clerk of Chancery, who is also the Clerk of the Court and a Deputy Clerk, there are four other Deputy Clerks, who primarily file pleadings and act as clerks for the Judges of the Chancery Court.
The Tupelo Chancery Court Judicial District is District 11 and includes Benton, Alcorn, Benton and Tippah Counties, as well as Benton, Oxford and Tupelo.
Court begins promptly at 8:45 a.m. on the scheduled trial date. The court does not have a designated courtroom. In Tupelo, the courtrooms are located on the 2nd floor of the Garnett Pearson Chancellor’s Building. The courtrooms are used by both circuit court and chancery court. Unless you are assigned to a particular Judge and courtroom, there is a system that is used in that district to keep up with which cases are called in which courtroom.
Getting Started: How to Start a Case in Chancery Court
Filing a case in the Chancery Court in Tupelo, MS is similar to most other Courts. First, you need to have a grounds for relief that is recognized in the Chancery Court (see the list of jurisdiction). Then, you need a lawyer to draft a document called a "complaint" which outlines your allegations or requests for relief and tells the Court who you are suing.
Once the complaint is drafted it needs to be filed with the Court. The Civil or Chancery Clerk’s office is located on the second floor of the courthouse. You will pay a fee (around $210 in 2016) and will immediately get a file stamped Plaintiff’s Complaint back. It’s a good idea to have several extra copies of the complaint (this is what we do) by the time you get back to your office because the Court will serve these on the parties via regular mail.
At this point you will either have the defendant served by the Sheriff or have to do it yourself. In Lee County, service on a corporation is done by sending the summons and complaint by regular mail to the place where you would normally send the bill. Service on an individual a whole host of issues, including the possibility of personal service and electronic service via Facebook, (see article link).
Once the defendant is served with process they will have 30 days to file an answer. The Court will then set a case management conference where all deadlines in the litigation will be determined.
Typical Cases Heard in Chancery Court
While the Chancery Court in North Mississippi is not a court of law, it can be considered a court of equity. In Southaven and Hernando, Chancellor Thomas W. Smith covers the Fifth District that includes Desoto County. The Ninth District which includes Lafayette, Benton, Tippah, Marshall, and Benton counties is under Chancellor Neil Harris. The Third District includes Alcorn, Prentiss, Tate, Tishomingo, Benton, Benton, Lafayette, Marshall, and Tippah counties and is covered by Chancellor Angela Cockerham.
The Chancery Court in Tupelo, MS hears all types of cases involving equitable matters. Equitable matters involve issues of fairness. The most common issues heard by the Chancery Court in Tupelo, MS include divorce proceedings, alimony, child custody, and property disputes. The Chancellors in Tupelo, MS are equipped to handle a wide variety of cases involving equitable issues from child support, adoption, termination of parental rights, child custody, community property division, custody modification, to restriction of a minor’s actions, partition of land, equitable distribution, equitable remedies, attest, adult-adoptions, and incapacity.
Most people in Tupelo, MS refer to the local Chancery Court as a "divorce court" because a significant majority of the cases heard in this court are divorces. However, in addition to divorce proceedings, the Chancery Court in Tupelo, MS hears matters ranging from juvenile matters, such as custody, to equitable remedies, to land partition.
One issue that comes up in nearly every child custody case is visitation. In the past, visitation was known as "access." What does this mean? Visitation is the term used to describe the period of time a non-custodian parent spends with his or her child. In the past, the court would merely award visitation to the non-custodial parent. However, today, courts are increasingly awarding visitation based on the best interest of the child, so long as there is no legitimate risk of harm to the child. Courts are also more conscious of the fact that visitation is a right afforded to the child rather than a privilege of the parent. While Mississippi law still provides that Joint Custody (shared legal custody) is presumed to be in the child’s best interest, it is important to keep in mind that it is just "a presumption." Therefore, the Chancellor may grant sole legal custody to either party if the evidence shows that it is in the child’s best interest.
In addition to divorce and child custody matters, the Chancery Court in Tupelo, MS hears various juvenile matters. Mississippi statutes dealing with juvenile matters are contained in Title 43 of the Mississippi Code Annotated. Examples of juvenile matters include but are not limited to criminal conduct by minors, juvenile home detention, abuse and neglect of minors, adoptive placement, protection of the health and welfare of minors, and adjudication of minors. The Chancery Court in Tupelo hears various juvenile matters that involve the safety and welfare of children.
Unlike crimes against society at large, which are prosecuted by the state, crimes against an individual are prosecuted through what is called a tort action. While there are many methods to redress a tort (such as monetary damages or special damages), the Chancery Court in Tupelo, MS hears claims for redressal of torts in an equitable manner. For example, if someone was injured in an auto accident, the injured party may sue the other party for injuries and lost wages. An equitable distribution of loss between the parties may be ordered as compensation for the injury. This is another type of case heard by the Chancery Court in Tupelo.
There are various ways in which the Chancery Court may afford equitable remedies to injured parties, depending on the unique characteristics of the case. Generally, the purpose of equitable remedies is to make the injured party whole again.
Courtroom Protocol and Procedures
In addition to the normal "rules of the courtroom" that apply throughout the state court system, the following are specific to the Chancery Court in Tupelo.
Sessions
Most days of the week, at 9:00 and 1:15, the court is in session. These are not jury trial sessions. Chancery Court handles cases without a jury.
Dress Code
The generally accepted dress code is business attire. The judge appreciates counsel’s effort to look like lawyers. By contrast, neither the judge, clerks, nor the staff are impressed by counsel’s effort to dress like Christopher Walken in this picture. So, leave your Warriors "motor clothes" in the closet when you go to court:
Even the military is confused about what is appropriate attire for the courtroom:
Cell phones
Cell phones in the court room are not allowed.
Visitors
No visitors are allowed in the court room. If your children or grandchildren are in town , politely tell them to wait downstairs. It’s not a good idea to have them in court.
Law books
The law libraries are currently stored in an off-site facility and are not available. Sources the court normally relies upon can be found on the court web page or managed electronically.
Research
Don’t forget that the AAA office has Lexis Nexis through the library at the courthouse. It’s available online and good for Mississippi practice guides, transaction descriptions, legal forms and secondary sources (i.e. an encyclopedia of the law) for states other than Mississippi. Only those with an AAA Office Card can access this service.
On-Site Help and Legal Aids
For legal assistance, there are a number of options for those needing help with the process. Chancery clerks’ offices are helpful in pointing you in the right direction. While clerks at the DeSoto and Madison county courthouses are not allowed to practice law, both are capable and smart legal people who have been around the block a time or two. In addition to the other skills of the clerks, Madison is particularly adept at making technology work to your advantage. You should ask the DeSoto clerk for a demo of LexisNexis file and serve to help you do your first filing in DeSoto County. If you are looking for free help, the Volunteer Lawyers Project offers free legal assistance to low-income people in civil cases. The project in many circuits also provides for representation by local attorneys. Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project is a non-profit organization with a single mission: to provide pro bono civil legal services to low-income Mississippians in need. MVLP recruits and trains Senior Lawyers Group volunteers, law students and general public volunteers to assist low-income Mississippians and provide legal representation on specific cases. MVLP has two offices – one in Jackson and the other in Hernando. Another great option for free legal help is Mississippi’s Pro Bono Representation Plan. According to the Mississippi Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 6.1 recommends that every lawyer licensed to practice law in Mississippi reports annually the following: Whether the lawyer has provided legal services without fee or expectation of fee and, if so, the nature of such service; and Total hours of uncompensated service. Most Chancery court districts have a large pool of lawyers willing to donate their time on appropriate projects. Contact your local bar association or the Mississippi Bar for more information. Attorneys willing to serve on the bench in Chancellor districts have the appropriate credentials to represent you for a reasonable fee.
Recent Noteworthy Cases and Rulings
The following are a few selected cases that I found on Westlaw using my "MS Chancery Courts" filter for 2016. This filter shows all of the written opinions issued by Chancery Courts across the state. I strategized long and hard about what cases to include on this list. Here are my selections:
Warren v. Warren
After a 12-day trial in September and October 2015, on February 1, 2016, Chancellor George Ready issued a 206-page opinion in the Warren case which involves a dispute among family members over three companies they co-own.
Trousdale v . Moar
This is an oil & gas boundary line dispute decided in the context of a quiet title and adverse possession suit. There is also a thorough treatment of the issue of attorney’s fees-particularly how and when they should be awarded in Mississippi litigation. Chancery Court Judge John Gregory issued this opinion on April 4, 2016.
Duncan v. Daney
On May 20, 2016, Chancellor Glen Alderson entered his written opinion in this case involving a dispute over an easement. The opinion covers topics such as easement maintenance, obstruction of an easement and abatement of nuisance.