Ruiz v. Musa

[Cite as Ruiz v. Musa, 2022-Ohio-335.]
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO
ELEVENTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
LAKE COUNTY
CHELSEA K. RUIZ, CASE NO. 2022-L-003
Plaintiff-Appellant,
Civil Appeal from the
-v- Court of Common Pleas,
Domestic Relations Division
DANIEL MUSA,
Defendant-Appellee. Trial Court No. 2013 DR 000189
MEMORANDUM
OPINION
Decided: February 7, 2022
Judgment: Appeal dismissed
Cory R. Hinton, Hanahan & Hinton, LLC, 8570 Mentor Avenue, Mentor, OH 44060 (For
Plaintiff-Appellant).
Jon D. Axelrod, Axelrod Law Office, 7976 Tyler Boulevard, Mentor, OH 44060 (For
Defendant-Appellee).
Denise Cook, 154 East Aurora Road, PMB #231, Northfield, OH 44067 (Guardian Ad
Litem).
MARY JANE TRAPP, J.
{¶1} Appellant, Chelsea K. Ruiz, through counsel, filed an appeal on January 7,
2022, from a Lake County Court of Common Pleas, Domestic Relations Division, entry.
{¶2} App.R. 3(A) expressly states that the only jurisdictional requirement for filing
a valid appeal is to file it within the time allowed by App.R. 4. The Supreme Court has
held that the failure to comply with the time requirements of App.R. 4(A) is a jurisdictional
defect, which is fatal to an appeal. In re H.F., 120 Ohio St.3d 499, 2008-Ohio-6810, ¶ 17,
citing State ex rel. Pendell v. Adams Cty. Bd. of Elections, 40 Ohio St.3d 58, 60 (1988).
{¶3} “Subject to the provisions of App.R. 4(A)(3), a party who wishes to appeal
from an order that is final upon its entry shall file the notice of appeal required by App.R.
3 within 30 days of that entry.” See App.R. 4(A)(1). Civ.R. 58(B) directs the clerk of
courts to serve the parties with notice of the entry within three days of entering the
judgment upon the journal. If Civ.R. 58(B) service does not occur within three days, the
time to appeal does not begin to run until service is made and noted in the appearance
docket. Coles v. Lawyers Title Ins. Corp., 163 Ohio App.3d 659, 664, 2005-Ohio-5360.
{¶4} Here, the record shows the trial court issued its entry on December 7, 2021.
The clerk of courts noted on the appearance docket that notice of the entry under Civ.R.
58(B) was issued to the parties on December 10, 2021. Since appellant was served
within the three-day period required in Civ.R. 58(B), the thirty-day period began to run on
the date of entry of judgment i.e., December 7, 2021. The deadline for appellant to file
his notice of appeal was January 6, 2022, which was not a holiday or a weekend. Thus,
appellant’s January 7, 2022 appeal was untimely filed.
{¶5} This court is not empowered to extend the time deadline in civil cases.
Pendell, supra at 60; see also App.R. 14(B).
{¶6} Based upon the foregoing, this appeal is hereby sua sponte dismissed
pursuant to App.R. 4(A)(1).
MATT LYNCH, J.,
JOHN J. EKLUND, J.,
concur.
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Case No. 2022-L-003