Lamontagne v. Arkansas Department of Human Services

I concur with the majority opinion but write separately to note the origin of the long-abandoned rule that an appellate court may address issues in equity cases that were not presented to the trial court.

The court of appeals certified this case to address an “issue upon which there is a perceived inconsistency” in the decisions of the supreme court-whether assignments of error in cases sounding in equity must be raised below in order to preserve the question for appellate review. The specific assignment of error in this case involves appellant Lamontagne’s assertion that the trial court…