AAMCO Transmissions, Inc. v. James A. Bova
This is a restricted appeal where AAMCO Transmissions, Inc. challenged a no-answer default judgment entered by the trial court in favor of James Bova. AAMCO contended that the default judgment was erroneously based on an unserved amended petition that allegedly sought greater relief after the trial court orally rendered a default judgment. The appellate court examined whether the unserved amended petition sought a more onerous judgment by increasing the amount of damages or by omitting co-defendants. The court concluded that the amended petition did not seek a more onerous judgment as the maximum recovery remained $2,000,000, and removing co-defendants did not increase AAMCO's potential liability for actual or punitive damages. Additionally, the court found that the judgment was not entered prematurely, as AAMCO had ample opportunity to answer the original petition but failed to do so. Therefore, the appellate court affirmed the trial court's judgment.