Propertymodification of opinionrehearing deniedremandjudgment for defendantsappellate procedureproperty
Facts
The provided text does not describe the underlying property dispute or the operative facts. It identifies plaintiffs Jaime A. Scher et al. and defendants John F. Burke et al. The only facts stated are procedural: the Supreme Court of California had filed an opinion on June 15, 2017, later modified it on August 9, 2017, and denied plaintiffs’ petition for rehearing. The modified disposition directs entry of judgment in favor of defendants on remand.
Issue
Whether the court’s previously filed opinion should be modified to clarify the disposition in part IV. Specifically, the modification clarifies that the Court of Appeal’s judgment is affirmed and that the case is remanded to the trial court with directions to enter judgment in favor of defendants.
Rule
When modifying an opinion, the Supreme Court may clarify the appellate disposition without affecting the judgment. In this case, the operative disposition is that the Court of Appeal’s judgment is affirmed insofar as it remands the case to the trial court with directions to enter judgment in favor of defendants.
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In a land-boundary dispute from Sacramento, the state supreme court issued an opinion stating that the intermediate appellate court had erred. Two months later, it entered a modification order revising one sentence to read: "We affirm the Court of Appeal’s judgment remanding the case to the trial court with directions to enter judgment in favor of defendants," and added that the modification did not affect the judgment.
What is the operative disposition after the modification order?
Explanation. The only rule supplied by the majority text is that the court may modify its opinion to clarify the disposition without affecting the judgment. Where the court states that the Court of Appeal’s judgment is affirmed insofar as it remands with directions to enter judgment for defendants, that is the operative disposition, and the express statement that the modification does not affect the judgment means the outcome remains unchanged. (Derived from Scher v. Burke (n.d.).)