2021 Ohio 2070
Ohio2021Background
- Relator Brian M. Ames filed four Portage County Common Pleas actions alleging Open Meetings Act violations by the Portage County Solid Waste Management District and the Board of Commissioners.
- Judge Thomas J. Pokorny was assigned after the originally assigned judge recused; three of the cases were consolidated in October 2019.
- The district and the board filed amended counterclaims for declaratory judgment on January 8, 2020; Ames filed motions to dismiss those counterclaims on January 14, 2020.
- Ames sought a writ of procedendo on December 3, 2020, contending his motions had been pending for about ten months; the Supreme Court issued an alternative writ as to the consolidated cases and set a briefing schedule.
- Ames submitted evidence showing Judge Pokorny signed an entry denying Ames’s motions and a docket entry reflecting a denial filed December 29, 2020.
- The Supreme Court dismissed the procedendo action as moot because the judge had already ruled on the motions.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Should a writ of procedendo issue to compel Judge Pokorny to rule on Ames’s motions to dismiss counterclaims? | Ames: motions pending ~10 months; seeks court order compelling a ruling. | Pokorny: motions already decided (denied). | Writ not warranted; case dismissed as moot because judge already ruled. |
| Is procedendo available to compel performance of a duty already performed? | Ames: need for relief due to delay; ordinary remedies inadequate. | Pokorny: procedendo cannot be used to compel a duty that has already been performed. | Procedendo will not issue for a duty already performed; relief denied/dismissed. |
Key Cases Cited
- State ex rel. Culgan v. Collier, 135 Ohio St.3d 436 (2013-Ohio-1762, 988 N.E.2d 564) (procedendo issues when a court refuses to enter judgment or unnecessarily delays proceeding to judgment)
- State ex rel. Morgan v. Fais, 146 Ohio St.3d 428 (2016-Ohio-1564, 57 N.E.3d 1140) (writ of procedendo will not issue to compel performance of a duty that has already been performed)