Rule 1 - Terms of Court and Case Assignment(a) The Chancery Court of the Tenth Chancery District shall be in continuous terms in each county of the District.(b) All new civil actions filed in this district shall be assigned equally and randomly among the four Chancellors by random computer assignment except as provided hereafter. The assignment of a civil action is permanent unless, for good cause stated, the assigned Chancellor transfers the case to the general docket for reassignment by way of Order or Recusal. Notice in writing of any prior filing (s) involving the same parties over the same or similar issues in any Mississippi court, will be provided to court clerks by the attorney or party filing of an action. UCCJEA disclosures containing such information will be pointed out to the filing clerk at the same time.(c) The assigned Chancellor shall have the sole responsibility for the management and disposition of all cases assigned to his/her docket. (d) If an assigned civil action is settled, the case may be presented to any Chancellor for Final Order provided approval by the assigned Chancellor or his/her Staff Attorney is obtained for another Chancellor to sign the order. Such Final Order shall reflect that the signature of the signing Chancellor is "for the assigned Chancellor."(e) If an assigned matter is heard as an accommodation by another Chancellor, the case shall nonetheless remain the assigned Chancellor's case for all future action. (f) Actions initiated by the Department of Human Services, Child Support Enforcement Division, shall be "exempt from initial assignment" without the necessity of filing the separate certificate as otherwise required under this Rule. Each Chancellor shall preside over for such cases by County as follows: The Place 1 Chancellor shall have Lamar and Perry Counties.
The Place 2 Chancellor shall have Marion County.
The Place 3 Chancellor shall have Forrest County.
The Place 4 Chancellor shall have Pearl River County.
Based on the limited court terms in Marion and Perry Counties, any Chancellor can preside over cases in those counties based on availability.
(g) Youth Court cases in Perry and Marion Counties, Mental Commitments and Alcohol and Drug Commitments are exempt from random assignment and will be handled by the Youth Court Referee or Special Master appointed for such hearings. If the Youth Court Referee or Special Master is unavailable, then one of the chancellors may hear case.(h) Guardianships and Minor Settlements. When a need arises to open guardianships and/or minor settlements for siblings, step-siblings, half-siblings and/or other unrelated children and the basis for such filings has arisen from the same causation, each such case shall be assigned to the Chancellor to whom the first case is assigned. If any minor's settlement arises out of an estate, the minor settlement(s) shall be assigned to the Chancellor to whom the estate matter is assigned. If the minor's settlement is opened for the purpose of receiving an inheritance from two (2) or more estates and they are assigned to different Chancellors, then the minor's settlement action will remain with the Chancellor to whom it was assigned upon filing. (i) Reciprocal Causes of Action. When one party initiates a cause of action against another party and the defendant from the first action later files a reciprocal cause of action against the plaintiff from the first action and both actions arise from the same set of facts, the two (2) actions shall be consolidated into the smaller cause number with that Chancellor regardless of to whom the later filed action was assigned or in what order service of process was accomplished.(j) Dismissed Causes of Action. If a party initiates a cause of action which is voluntarily dismissed or dismissed on a Clerk's motion for want of prosecution and later re-files a new cause of action based upon the same or substantially similar causation as the previously dismissed filing, then the new cause of action shall be assigned to the Chancellor to whom the initial cause of action had been assigned.(k) Temporary Restraining Orders are to be presented to the assigned Chancellor. However, in the event the assigned Chancellor is not available and the matter is of a genuine emergency nature, it may be presented to any available Chancellor who may act for and on behalf of the assigned Chancellor. The matter shall be heard on the merits by the assigned Chancellor.Approved as amended by the Supreme Court by order entered 3/1/2023.