Opinion
No. 2014AP1390.
2015-05-20
AURORA CREDIT UNION, Enterprise Credit Union, First Credit Union, Focus Credit Union, Glacier Hills Credit Union, Guardian Credit Union, Landmark Credit Union, MCU Financial Center Credit Union, Prime Financial Credit Union, Sherwin Williams Credit Union, Southshore Credit Union, Summit Credit Union and W.C.U.L. Services Corporation, Plaintiffs–Respondents, TruStone Financial Federal Credit Union, Plaintiff, v. David CHAPMAN, Richard Jungen, Elaine E. Jungen, Richard Matthews, Matthews Living Trust, John Doe and Jane Doe, Defendants, Timothy Casey, Defendant–Appellant.
As the circuit court in this case properly noted, we have determined that para. (g) applies only to actions in equity. See Nelson v. Taff, 175 Wis.2d 178, 188, 499 N.W.2d 685 (Ct.App.1993). Connor, an equitable action decided eight years after Nelson, did nothing to undermine our holding in Nelson. Counsel for Casey agreed with the court at the hearing on his motion to vacate that the present action is an action at law, not in equity. Casey provides us with no authority superseding or overturning our decision in Nelson, and we are therefore bound by it. Cook v. Cook, 208 Wis.2d 166, 189–90, 560 N.W.2d 246 (1997) (this court has no authority to overturn its own published opinions). Because this is an action at law, not in equity, § 806.07(1)(g) cannot save Casey, and the circuit court did not err when it denied Casey relief on this ground. The circuit court then balanced the interests of all the parties, considering also “the balance between finality of judgments and fair judgments,” and concluded that this case did not present “egregious circumstances” that would justify vacating the judgment against Casey.