Brookstone Homes, LLC v. Merco Holdings, LLC

Citations

• 208 Conn. App. 789

Syllabus

In this joint appeal, the appellants were the plaintiffs in a breach of contract action and the defendants in a separate action brought by various limited liability companies to discharge lis pendens filed against their properties in connection with the breach of contract action. The appellees were various limited liability companies with rental properties. Sixteen of the appellees filed an application pursuant to statute (§ 52-325a) to discharge the lis pendens. The trial court granted the application, concluding that the appellants had not shown probable cause that their breach of contract case was an action intended to affect the real property on which the lis pendens had been filed. Pursuant to the applicable statute (§ 52-325c), the appellants appealed to this court from the order discharg- ing the lis pendens and indicated on the appeal form that the appeal was also being filed in connection with their breach of contract action. Thereafter, the appellants filed a motion to stay the order discharging the lis pendens pending the appeal pursuant to § 52-325c, which the trial court denied. The appellants then filed a motion for review pursuant to the applicable rule of practice (§ 66-6), challenging the denial of their motion to stay, but failed to request a stay of execution of the trial court's judgment until this court had ruled on their motion for review. The appellees recorded the order discharging the lis pendens on the land records. Thereafter, this court dismissed the appellants' motion for review and ordered the parties to file memoranda to address whether the appeal should be dismissed as moot as to the lis pendens case and for lack of a final judgment as to the breach of contract case. The appellants filed a memorandum of law opposing dismissal. The appellees did not file a response to the order. Held: 1. The portion of the appeal challenging the trial court's judgment in the lis pendens case was moot: pursuant to § 52-325c, a stay is automatic for only