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Greenwell v. Davis11/22/2005
The City of Texarkana, Arkansas, and Glenn Martin Greenwell appeal the trial court's denial of their joint motion for partial summary judgment based on sovereign immunity under Arkansas law. The squad car being driven by Greenwell, an on-duty police officer with the City of Texarkana, Arkansas, and a vehicle driven by April Nicole Brown Davis collided on the Texas side of State Line Avenue. The City and Greenwell raise two issues on appeal: 1) Do the City and Greenwell have standing to bring an interlocutory appeal based on the denial of their motion for summary judgment? and 2) Did the trial court err in refusing to grant the motion for summary judgment based on sovereign immunity and official immunity under Arkansas law? Because we answer each of these questions in the affirmative, we reverse the judgment of the trial court.
State Line Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the City of Texarkana, which straddles the border between Texas and Arkansas. The northbound lanes of State Line Avenue are in Arkansas, but the southbound lanes are in Texas. On March 15, 2002, Davis' and Greenwell's vehicles collided on the Texas side of State Line Avenue. At the time of the collision, Greenwell was acting in the scope of his employment as a police officer with the City. Davis filed suit in Texas against the City of Texarkana, Arkansas, and Greenwell alleging that the negligent conduct of Greenwell caused the collision and alleging that her damages exceeded $500,000.00. The City filed a motion for partial summary judgment alleging that Arkansas sovereign immunity should be applied through the doctrine of comity. According to the City, Arkansas law waives sovereign immunity only for the amount covered by liability insurance. See Ark. Code Ann. ยง 21-9-301 (2005). The trial court found that applying the Arkansas statute would violate Texas public policy and denied the motion for partial summary judgment.
We first examine the doctrines of sovereign immunity and comity. We then address whether we have jurisdiction to hear this interlocutory appeal. We conclude we have jurisdiction over both the City's and Greenwell's appeals. Next, we discuss what standard of review should govern our analysis and hold that we should review de novo the trial court's decision. We then consider whether the Full Faith and Credit Clause requires us to recognize Arkansas law. Because both states have significant contacts with the transaction, the United States Constitution does not require Texas to recognize Arkansas law if that law violates Texas public policy. Last, we consider whether the trial court erred in concluding that the Arkansas sovereign immunity law is contrary to Texas public policy. Given the policy of promoting amicable relationships by recognizing a sister state's law, the extent of the difference in the laws is not so contrary to Texas public policy that we should refuse to enforce the Arkansas law.
I. Sovereign Immunity Doctrine
The doctrine of sovereign immunity, as developed at common law, originated in the feudal system. Nevada v. Hall, 440 U.S. 410, 414--15 (1979). The doctrine rested on the fiction that the "King could do no wrong." Id. at 415. This fiction has, of course, been rejected, but the doctrine of sovereign immunity, or governmental immunity, continues to be recognized under the common law. Concerning this doctrine, Alexander Hamilton wrote, "It is inherent in the nature of sovereignty not to be amenable to the suit of an individual without its consent." The Federalist No. 81 (Alexander Hamilton). As explained by Justice Holmes, sovereign immunity rests "on the logical and practical ground that there can be no legal right as against the authority that makes the law on
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