Bales v. City of Fort Smith, Ark.

hDon Paul Bales appeals from the Sebastian County Circuit Court’s dismissal of his wrongful-termination lawsuit against the City of Fort Smith (the City). The circuit court determined that it was without jurisdiction to hear Bales’s case because he had not timely filed his notice of appeal with the Fort Smith Civil Service Commission (Commission). In his appeal to our court, Bales contends 1) the trial court had jurisdiction under Rule 9 of the Arkansas District Court Rules; 2) Arkansas Code Annotated section 14-51-308 (Repl. 2013) is not jurisdictional; and 3) even if the filing requirements…