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Brown v. Silvern12/1/2005
ORDER REVERSED AND CASE REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS
Taubman and Hawthorne, JJ., concur
In this legal malpractice case, defendant, Steven Silvern, appeals the order denying his motion for sanctions against John L. Springer and Darin L. Schanker, attorneys representing plaintiff, Thomas Brown. We reverse and remand for further proceedings.
In 1992, Silvern represented Brown in an automobile personal injury action that was eventually settled with Brown's consent. In 1997, Brown commenced this action against Silvern, asserting that he had undervalued Brown's claim, had failed to obtain consent to settle from Brown's automobile insurer and thus had failed to preserve Brown's right to underinsured motorist benefits, and had settled the case for less than the amount to which Brown was entitled. See Brown v. Silvern, 45 P.3d 749 (Colo. App. 2001).
In 2004, the parties entered into a settlement agreement under which Silvern agreed to pay Brown $10,000, but Silvern retained the right to pursue sanctions against Springer and Schanker. The parties filed a joint motion to dismiss Brown's claims with prejudice, which the trial court granted. Although both parties briefed the court regarding the settlement and indicated that the issue of sanctions was not resolved by the agreement, the court's dismissal order was silent as to sanctions.
The day after the court dismissed the action, Silvern filed a motion seeking sanctions and attorney fees from Springer and Schanker pursuant to C.R.C.P. 11 and 37 and ยง 13-17-102, C.R.S. 2005. He also requested a hearing. The trial court initially granted the request for a hearing, but later denied the motion without holding a hearing. This appeal followed.
I. Trial Court Jurisdiction
As a threshold matter, Springer and Schanker assert that, because the entire case was voluntarily dismissed with prejudice before Silvern filed the motion and the court did not expressly retain jurisdiction to decide matters of attorney fees or sanctions, the court lacked jurisdiction to consider it. We reject this assertion.
A court's jurisdiction consists of two elements: jurisdiction over the parties (personal jurisdiction) and jurisdiction over the subject matter of the issue to be decided (subject matter jurisdiction). See People in Interest of Clinton, 762 P.2d 1381 (Colo. 1988). Whether a court has subject matter jurisdiction is an issue that may be raised at any time. Paine, Webber, Jackson & Curtis, Inc. v. Adams, 718 P.2d 508 (Colo. 1986). Issues of personal jurisdiction, however, are waived if not timely asserted. Clinic Masters, Inc. v. Dist. Court, 192 Colo. 120, 556 P.2d 473 (1976).
Subject matter jurisdiction is defined as a court's power to resolve a dispute in which it renders judgment. Trans Shuttle, Inc. v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 58 P.3d 47 (Colo. 2002); Horton v. Suthers, 43 P.3d 611 (Colo. 2002). A court has subject matter jurisdiction if "the case is one of the type of cases that the court has been empowered to entertain by the sovereign from which the court derives its authority." Horton v. Suthers, supra, 43 P.3d at 615 (quoting Paine, Webber, Jackson & Curtis, Inc. v. Adams, supra, 718 P.2d at 513). "Whether a court possesses such jurisdiction is generally only dependent on the nature of the claim and the relief sought." Trans Shuttle, Inc. v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, supra, 58 P.3d at 50. " t is the facts alleged and the relief requested that decide the substance of a claim, which in turn is determinative of the existence of subject matter jurisdiction." Trans Shuttle, Inc. v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, supra 58 P.3d at 50 (quoting City of Boulder v. Pub. Serv. Co., 996 P.2d 198,
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