However, as Keith notes in his brief, agency actions governed by the Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act are exempt from the Rules of Civil Procedure because the A.P.A. provides a different procedure for the parties to follow. See Ark. R. Civ. P. 81(a); See also Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984) and Wright v. Arkansas State Plant Board, 311 Ark. 125, 842 S.W.2d 42 (1992). [10] Under the A.P.A., Bancshares and Union Bank did not have to be listed as parties, they just had to be served with notice of the proceedings.
Section 25-15-212 establishes the rules and procedures applicable to the process. In Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984), this Court held the Rules of Civil Procedure do not apply to the judicial review procedure. In fact, we stated that when a party chooses to proceed pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act he is bound by the procedures set out therein.
This is analogous to applying the Rules of Civil Procedure to judicial review of administrative decisions which we have refrained from doing in the past. See Wright v. Arkansas State Plant Bd., 311 Ark. 125, 842 S.W.2d 42 (1992); Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984). That, however, is the next logical step under the rationale of today's opinion.
When we promulgated Rule 2, we did not intend to alter the statutory rights of appeal that were then in existence. Sunbelt Courier v. McCartney, 303 Ark. 522, 798 S.W.2d 92 (1990), and Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984). The Uniform Arbitration Act and its section on appeals, 16-108-219, were enacted in 1969 and were in existence at the time we promulgated Rule 2.
A hearing was held on the motion but the court denied it and accepted an order drafted by the Plant Board pursuant to the court's directions. The Plant Board countered that under Ark. Code Ann. 25-15-212(h)(1)-(6)(1992) and Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984), the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure do not apply to civil actions brought under the Administrative Procedure Act. We held in Whitlock that the Administrative Procedure Act is an exception to the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure under Rule 81(a), and we have repeated this rule in more recent cases.
Similarly, we have held that appeal provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, instead of the Rules of Civil Procedure, govern the review of an agency decision. Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984). Accordingly, we affirm the holding of the Court of Appeals and remand the case to that court for a decision on the merits.
Similarly, we have held that appeal provisions of the Administrative Procedures Act, instead of the Rules of Civil Procedure, govern the review of an agency decision. Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984).
She is incorrect. First, agency actions governed by the APA are exempt from the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure, which do not apply to administrative proceedings. Ford v. Keith , 338 Ark. 487, 996 S.W.2d 20 (1999) ; Arkansas Dep't of Human Servs. v. Campbell , 87 Ark. App. 206, 189 S.W.3d 495 (2004) (citing Whitlock v. G.P.W. Nursing Home, Inc. , 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984) ). Therefore, default judgment is not an appropriate remedy for an appeal from an administrative proceeding.
In Ashcraft v. Quimby, 2 Ark. App. 174, 617 S.W.2d 390 (1981), we held, in effect, that the time for filing notice of appeal in a workers' compensation case was governed by Acts 252 and 253 of 1979 (predecessors of Ark. Code Ann. 11-9-711(b)) rather than Rule 4 of the Rules of Appellate Procedure. The problem is similar to that addressed by the supreme court in Whitlock v. G.P.W Nursing Home, Inc., 283 Ark. 158, 672 S.W.2d 48 (1984). In that case there was conflict between the Administrative Procedure Act and the Arkansas Rules of Civil Procedure.