Arkansas Circuit Courts Judges' Benchbook Civil & Criminal Divisions
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Arkansas Circuit Courts Judges’ Benchbook Civil & Criminal Divisions The Administrative Office of the Courts Justice Building, Suite 1100 625 Marshall Street Little Rock, AR 72201 (501) 682-9400 https://courts.arkansas.gov/ Updated March 2014 elcome to the updated Circuit Court Judges’ Benchbook for the Criminal and Civil Divisions. We are pleased to provide you with this up-to-date resource that W we hope will aid you in your legal research and decision-making. The new format of the Benchbook lends itself to both hardcopy and digital formats. To make the most of this Benchbook, we suggest that you utilize the embedded links to cases, court rules, and other resources. In order to access the case law, you will need to sign in to your Fastcase account using your Arkansas Bar Association log in. It is easy to do. You will need to repeat this process each session that you use the Benchbook. You may consider “bookmarking” these links for future reference. If you do not have access to Fastcase because you are not a member of the Arkansas Bar, find out more about becoming a member at https://www.arkbar.com/pages/Join_Renew_Membership_Online.aspx. First, go to https://www.arkbar.com/ and click on “Fastcase.” Then, sign in using your log in information. Click “Fastcase” one more time, and you will be logged in. You are now ready to use the links in the Benchbook. Without closing out your browser, open the Benchbook, which can be found at https://courts.arkansas.gov/administration/education/publications. When you click on a case, it should take you straight to Fastcase. Note: You will continue to be signed in to Fastcase as long as your browser remains open. If you close out of your browser, you will need to sign in to Fastcase again through the arkbar.org website. Please note that Fastcase has not yet updated the Arkansas Code with the changes from the 2013 legislative session, so there are not any hyperlinks to online statutes in the Benchbook. They will be added and the Benchbook republished as soon as they become available. To search for statutes online, you will need to use the General Assembly’s website. First, go to http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/arcode/Default.asp. Then, type in the statute call numbers and press enter. (For example, “5-3-101” will take you to the statute for Affirmative Defenses to Inchoate Offenses.) As always, the staff at the Administrative Office of the Courts is here to help. If you have any questions, please contact: Krystal Mann (501) 682-9400 or (800) 950-8221 [email protected]. Thank you and enjoy! Click on the Chapter Heading to jump directly to the designated page. Table of Contents I. Jurisdiction ....................................................................................... 1 Subject Matter Jurisdiction .................................................................................................. 1 Personal Jurisdiction ............................................................................................................ 1 In Rem Jurisdiction .............................................................................................................. 3 Quasi-in-Rem Jurisdiction .................................................................................................... 4 Challenges to Jurisdiction .................................................................................................... 5 II. Venue ................................................................................................... 6 Civil Actions In General ....................................................................................................... 6 Local Civil Actions ................................................................................................................ 6 Actions on Debt, Account or Note ......................................................................................... 6 Local Criminal Actions ......................................................................................................... 6 Transitory Cases ................................................................................................................... 7 Transitory Actions ................................................................................................................ 7 Causes of Action ................................................................................................................ 7 Corporate Defendants ....................................................................................................... 8 Plaintiff’s Residence .............................................................................................................. 8 Actions Involving the State .................................................................................................. 9 Objections to Venue .............................................................................................................. 9 Change of Venue Procedure - Civil ......................................................................................10 Change of Venue Procedure - Criminal ...............................................................................10 III. Specific Actions ............................................................................. 12 Real Property .......................................................................................................................12 Eminent Domain ..............................................................................................................12 Forcible Entry and Detainer ............................................................................................14 Escheated Estates ............................................................................................................16 Ejectment – In General ....................................................................................................17 Ejectment – Tax Deed ......................................................................................................18 Partition ............................................................................................................................19 Adverse Possession & the Statute of Limitations for Land Actions ...............................20 Public Nuisances ..............................................................................................................20 Specific Writs .......................................................................................................................21 Mandamus and Prohibition ..............................................................................................21 Certiorari ..........................................................................................................................22 Corporations .........................................................................................................................22 Dissolution & Liquidation ................................................................................................22 Uniform Arbitration Act ......................................................................................................24 Jurisdiction .......................................................................................................................24 Venue ................................................................................................................................24 Motions to Compel or Stay ...............................................................................................24 Appointment of Arbitrators ..............................................................................................25 Confirmation of an Award ................................................................................................25 Vacating an Award ...........................................................................................................25 Modification or Correction of an Award ...........................................................................26 Recovery of Personal Property .............................................................................................27 Replevin ............................................................................................................................27 Unpaid Seller’s Lien .........................................................................................................28 Lis Pendens ......................................................................................................................28 Election Contests .................................................................................................................28 Actions on Bond ...................................................................................................................29 Contempt ..............................................................................................................................30 Agreed Cases ........................................................................................................................31 Change of Name ...................................................................................................................31 Removing Disability of Minors ............................................................................................31 Seizure & Forfeiture ............................................................................................................32 Firearm