Thornton v. Empire Bank

I concur in the principal opinion’s conclusion that the trial court had no jurisdiction to proceed on the petition. I likewise concur in the principal opinion’s directive to the trial court to set aside its judgment and dismiss the petition.

However, the principal opinion contains another ruling; the principal opinion dismisses the appeal. To me, it is anomalous to dismiss an appeal and simultaneously direct a trial court to set aside a judgment and dismiss an action.

Generally, when an appeal is dismissed, the trial court’s judgment remains intact. That is because appeals are generally…