Heartwood Home Health & Hospice LLC v. Huber
2016 UT App 183
| Utah Ct. App. | 2016Background
- Heartwood sued former employees Rita Huber and Glenna Molyneux (and others) in 2012 for claims including breach of contract and breaches of loyalty/confidentiality after they left to join a competitor.
- During discovery, Appellees served a Rule 11 safe-harbor letter alleging Heartwood’s claims against them lacked factual or legal basis; after 21 days they moved for Rule 11 sanctions and moved for summary judgment.
- The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Appellees, then entered an order finding a Rule 11 violation (June 20, 2014) and later awarded attorney fees as sanctions (August 21, 2014).
- Heartwood filed a notice of appeal after the fee award, relying on Clark v. Booth to argue Rule 11 sanctions are immediately appealable and separable from the merits.
- While the appeal was pending, the Utah Supreme Court decided Migliore v. Livingston Financial, repudiating Clark and holding attorney-fee requests (including Rule 11 sanctions) must be raised in a single appeal from a final judgment.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Rule 11 sanction orders are immediately appealable separate from the merits | Clark permits immediate, independent appeal of Rule 11 sanctions; Heartwood timely appealed the sanctions order | Migliore requires attorney-fee claims (including Rule 11 sanctions) be appealed only after entry of a final judgment in a single appeal | Migliore governs; Rule 11 sanctions are not separately appealable here and the appeal is premature and dismissed for lack of jurisdiction |
| Whether Migliore applies to this pending appeal (retroactivity) | Heartwood: Migliore issued after the district court’s Rule 11 order, so Clark should control for this appeal | Appellees: Migliore applies retroactively to pending appeals; Heartwood has not shown justifiable reliance on Clark or undue hardship | Migliore applies retroactively; Heartwood failed to show reliance or hardship, so Migliore governs this appeal |
Key Cases Cited
- Clark v. Booth, 821 P.2d 1146 (Utah 1991) (previously allowed Rule 11 sanctions to be appealed separately from merits)
- ProMax Dev. Corp. v. Raile, 998 P.2d 254 (Utah 2000) (requires appeals to include fee awards in a single notice of appeal for judicial economy)
- Migliore v. Livingston Financial, LLC, 347 P.3d 394 (Utah 2015) (repudiated Clark and held attorney-fee requests, including Rule 11 sanctions, must be raised in a single appeal after final judgment)