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368 S.C. 630

Lewis v. State

Supreme Court of South Carolina

Decided April 19, 2006

Supreme Court of South Carolina · decided 2006-04-19

Cited by 2 later decisions — most recently August 2010

2 state decisions

Key passage — most relied on by later courts

“Any judgment or decree, leaving some further act to be done by the court before the rights of the parties are determined, is interlocutory; but if it so completely fixes the rights of the parties that the court has nothing further to do in the action, then it is final.”

quoted by 1 later decision, including Ashenfelder v. City of Georgetown

Applies SC 17 § 17-27-100 · SC 17 § 17-27-70

Relies on Mid-State Distributors, Inc. v. Century Importers, Inc. · Adickes v. Allison

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 2006-04-19

View the full empirical analysis of this case →

¶1ORDER

¶2By order dated January 30, 2006, the circuit court issued a conditional order of dismissal in this post-conviction relief case. This order gave petitioner twenty days to show cause why the conditional order should not become final. Instead of filing a reply to this conditional order of dismissal, petitioner has filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with this Court, which we have construed as a notice of appeal.

¶3*631Under Rule 227, SCACR, and S.C.Code Ann. § 17-27-100 (2003), only a final decision or judgment in a post-conviction relief action is subject to review. “Any judgment or decree, leaving some further act to be done by the court before the rights of the parties are determined, is interlocutory; but if it so completely fixes the rights of the parties that the court has nothing further to do in the action, then it is final.” Adickes v. Allison & Bratton, 21 S.C. 245 (1884); see also Mid-State Distributors, Inc. v. Century Importers, Inc., 310 S.C. 330, 426 S.E.2d 777 (1993).

¶4In our opinion, a conditional order of dismissal is not the final judgment in a post-conviction relief case since there is another act to be done before the rights of the parties are finally determined — the issuance of an order following the filing of a reply or the issuance of an order based on the default in filing a reply. S.C.Code Ann. § 17-27-70(b) (2003). Accordingly, this matter is dismissed without prejudice.

s/ Jean H. Toal, C.J.s/ James E. Moore, J.s/ John H. Waller, Jr„ J.s/ E.C. Burnett, III, J.s/ Costa M. Pleicones, J.
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