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Ferrer v. Jackson County Board of Supervisors4/29/1999
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 08/07/97
TRIAL JUDGE: HON. BILL JONES
COURT FROM WHICH APPEALED: JACKSON COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
NATURE OF THE CASE: CIVIL - PERSONAL INJURY
MOTION FOR REHEARING FILED:
MANDATE ISSUED:
EN BANC
. In this case, the Court is faced with the issue of whether substantial compliance with the notice requirements of Miss. Code Ann. § 11-46-11(1)(Supp. 1998), the Mississippi Tort Claims Act ("MTCA"), satisfies the requirements of the statute. This Court recently held that substantial compliance with the MTCA is sufficient and that the determination of substantial compliance is to be decided on a case-by-case basis. Reaves v. Randall, No. 97-CA-00982-SCT, 1998 WL 909578 (Miss. Dec. 31, 1998); Carr v. Town of Shubuta, No. 96-CT-01266-SCT, 1999 WL 62772 (Miss. Feb. 11, 1999); Alexander v. Mississippi Gaming Comm'n, No. 98-CA-00295-SCT, 1999 WL 191856 (Miss. Apr. 8, 1999). We conclude that Ferrer's actions of communicating with the Board of Supervisors in the present case equate to substantial compliance. Accordingly, the judgment of the trial court is reversed, and this case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
I.
. On November 1, 1996, Albert N. Ferrer, Jr., instituted this action in the Circuit Court of Jackson County, Mississippi, against William E. Holloway, a Jackson County Deputy Sheriff, and the Jackson County Board of Supervisors (hereinafter "the Board"). Ferrer's suit alleged that Holloway was negligently operating his patrol car when he collided with Ferrer's vehicle at an intersection in Pascagoula, Mississippi, on November 25, 1995. Holloway was dismissed from the case on June 6, 1997, leaving only the Board as a defendant in this action.
. On April 10, 1997, the Board filed a motion for summary judgment. The Board's motion alleged that Ferrer had failed to file proper notice of his claim upon the chief executive officer of Jackson County, before filing suit, as statutorily mandated by Miss. Code Ann. § 11-46-11 (Supp. 1997), a part of the MTCA. Ferrer countered that the Board had actual notice of his claim due to a series of payments, letters and settlement offers between Ferrer and the Board.
. The circuit court granted the Board's motion on August 7, 1997, holding that Ferrer had failed to file proper notice of his claim. Taking exception with the lower court's decision, Ferrer filed a notice of appeal with this Court on August 21, 1997, raising the following issues:
"I. FERRER MET THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE STATUTE BY GIVING ACTUAL, COMPREHENSIVE, AND DETAILED NOTICE TO THE PROPER AUTHORITY IN A TIMELY MANNER. "II. THE BOARD WAIVED ANY ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS OF NOTICE. "III. THE BOARD IS ESTOPPED FROM RAISING THE ISSUE OF LACK OF COMPLIANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE STATUTE. "IV. THE COURT'S RULING FOR THE BOARD ON THE MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT WAS IN ERROR."
II.
. The genesis of this case was an automobile collision that occurred on or about November 25, 1995, in Pascagoula, Jackson County, Mississippi. Ferrer alleges that the crash was caused when a police car, owned by the Board and operated by Deputy Sheriff William E. Holloway, was negligently driven through a red light at an intersection. Ferrer claimed that this collision caused him serious personal injury and property damage.
. Soon after the accident occurred, settlement negotiations ensued between Ferrer and the Board via their respective attorneys, Jerry L. Hutcherson and Peggy G. Mullins. These Discussions were conducted primarily through a series of letters between Hutcherson and Mullins
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