Article

Certiorari Petition was Certainly Premature

Plaintiff was injured in Pope County and filed suit in the Court of Claims against the University for personal injuries. The Court of Claims Act limited damages in a tort case to $100,000 unless the action arises out of the operation of a state vehicle by a state employee. Plaintiff was driving a tractor and claimed it was a state vehicle which he, a state employee, was operating when he was injured. The Court granted the University™s motion to strike the claim for damages, thus Plaintiff filed a petition for writ of certiorari, in Pope County, naming the Court of Claims as respondent. Thereafter, the Court of Claims filed a motion to transfer venue to Sangamon County, and the appellate court agreed. The Supreme Court then held that the writ of certiorari was premature because the Court of Claims had not rendered a final judgment. Thus, the Appellate Court™s findings were vacated and the case was remanded for further proceedings.