Civil Practice – Venue – Unemancipated Minor – Guardian ad Litem – Tort/Negligence – Medical Malpractice – Appeals

Jenkins v. Hearn Vascular Surgery, P.A. (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-07-1164, 14 pp.) (Cressie H. Thigpen Jr., J.) Appealed from Forsyth County Superior Court. (R. Stuart Albright, J.) N.C. App. Click here for the full-text opinion.

Holding: Even though the infant plaintiff has spent her entire life in a Forsyth County hospital, since she is an unemancipated minor who has not been abandoned, she is considered a resident of her parents’ home in Alamance County. All parties are Alamance County residents; therefore, venue in Forsyth County is improper.

We reverse the trial court’s denial of defendants’ motion to change venue. We dismiss defendants’ appeal from the trial court’s denial of their motion to dismiss.

Although the infant’s guardian ad litem is a resident of Forsyth County, a guardian ad litem is not a party in interest. His county of residence is insufficient, standing alone, to establish venue.

Defendants have offered no evidence as to any potential injury to either party, and we see none, if the appeal of the denial of defendants’ motion to dismiss is presented after a final judgment on the merits. Therefore, the denial of defendants’ motion to dismiss is not immediately appealable.