Ittu v Charley [1987] FMKSC 4; 3 FSM Intrm. 188 (Kos. S. Ct. Tr. 1987) (7 September 1987)

KOSRAE STATE COURT
TRIAL DIVISION
Cite as Ittu v. Charley, 3 FSM Intrm. 188 (Kos . S. Ct. Tr. 1987)

[3 FSM Intrm. 188]

LUPE ITTU,
Plaintiff,

v.

MEKITA CHARLEY,
Defendant.

CIVIL ACTION NO. 12-84

OPINION

Before Edward C. King
Kosrae State Associate Justice
(by appointment of Chief Justice Skilling)
Kosrae State Court
September 7, 1987

APPEARANCES:

For the Plaintiff:
Delson Ehmes
Micronesian Legal Services Corporation
Kosrae, FSM 96944

For the Defendant:
Aliksa B. Aliksa
Trial Counselor
Kosrae, FSM 96944

* * * *

HEADNOTES

Civil Procedure - -finality of judgment
Under res judicata a final judgment on the merits of an action precludes the parties or their privies from re-litigating issues that were or could have been raised in that action. Ittu v. Charley, 3 FSM Intrm. 188, 190 (Kos. S. Ct. Tr. 1987).

Civil Procedure - failure to prosecute
Dismissal of a claim for failure of the plaintiff to prosecute normally operates as an adjudication on the merits. Ittu v. Charley, 3 FSM Intrm. 188, 191 (Kos. S. Ct. Tr. 1987).

[3 FSM Intrm. 189]

Civil Procedure - res judicata
Under common law res judicata principles, an order of dismissal with prejudice bars reassertion of the dismissed claim at a later date. Ittu v. Charley, 3 FSM Intrm. 188, 191 (Kos. S. Ct. Tr. 1987).

Judgment - res judicata
A judgment of a court having jurisdiction of the parties and of the subject matter operates as res judicata, in the absence of fraud or collusion, even if obtained upon a default. Ittu v. Charley, 3 FSM Intrm. 188, 191 (Kos. S. Ct. Tr. 1987).

Civil Procedure - finality of judgment
The need for finality of judgment, which is the inspiration of the res judicata doctrine, exists within the FSM. Ittu v. Charley, 3 FSM Intrm. 188, 191 (Kos. S. Ct. Tr. 1987).

Civil Procedure - affidavits
An affidavit which merely sets out conclusions or beliefs of the affiant, but plans no specific factual basis therefore, is inadequate. Ittu v. Charley, 3 FSM Intrm. 188, 193 (Kos. S. Ct. Tr. 1987).

* * * *

COURT'S OPINION

EDWARD C. KING, Associate Justice:

This is the third civil action initiated in the Trust Territory High Court by Lupe Ittu against Mekita Charley concerning ownership of the land known as Sungankuta in Malem Municipality.^[1]