Deborah M. Thomas, Claimant/Appellant, v. St. Martin's Child Care Center and Division of Employment Security, Respondents.

This slip opinion is subject to revision and may not reflect the final opinion adopted by the Court. Opinion Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District Case Style: Deborah M. Thomas, Claimant/Appellant, v. St. Martin's Child Care Center and Division of Employment Security, Respondents. Case Number: ED83788 Handdown Date: 02/10/2004 Appeal From: Labor and Industrial Relations Commission Counsel for Appellant: Party Acting Pro Se Counsel for Respondent: Cynthia Ann Quetsch Opinion Summary: Deborah M. Thomas appeals the labor and industrial relations commission's decision affirming the appeals tribunal's denial of unemployment benefits to her. DISMISSED. Division Five holds: This Court lacks jurisdiction to consider Thomas' appeal. Her notice of appeal to this Court was untimely, and there is no mechanism for allowing Thomas to seek a special order for leave to file an untimely appeal. Citation: Opinion Author: Sherri B. Sullivan, Chief Judge Opinion Vote: DISMISSED. Mooney and Draper III, JJ., concur. Opinion:

Deborah M. Thomas (Claimant) appeals the decision of the Labor and Industrial Relations Commission (Commission) affirming the Appeals Tribunal's denial of unemployment benefits to her. Because we find Claimant's notice of appeal untimely, we dismiss the appeal.

A deputy of the Division of Employment Security (Division) denied Claimant's application for unemployment benefits, concluding that she left work with her employer voluntarily without good cause attributable to her work or employer. Claimant sought review with the Appeals Tribunal, which affirmed the deputy's determination. Claimant filed an application for review by the Commission. The Commission affirmed the decision of the Appeals Tribunal. The Secretary of the Commission certified that she mailed a copy of the Commission's decision to Claimant on October 20, 2003. Claimant filed a notice of appeal to this Court on November 20, 2003. Claimant has twenty days to appeal a final decision of the Commission. Section 288.210.(FN1) The Commission's decision becomes final ten days after the date it is mailed to the parties. Section 288.200.2. Here, the Secretary for the Commission mailed its decision to Claimant on October 20, 2003. The decision became final ten days later on October 30, 2003, and the notice of appeal was due on November 19, 2003. Claimant's notice of appeal, which was filed on November 20, 2003, was untimely under Section 288.210. This Court has a duty to determine sua sponte whether it has jurisdiction. Williams v. ESI Mail Pharmacy Serv., Inc. , 103 S.W.3d 848 (Mo. App. E.D. 2003). As a result, we issued an order directing Claimant to show cause why this appeal should not be dismissed as untimely. In response, Claimant contends that someone at the Commission told her that her forms were due by November 20 th . She concedes that she mailed the appeal to the Commission on November 20, 2003. She further concedes that the decision mailed to her from the Commission told her that she had only thirty days to file her appeal. However, thirty days from October 20, 2003 is November 19, 2003, not November 20, 2003. No matter the reason for its delay, an untimely notice of appeal in an unemployment case deprives this Court of jurisdiction to entertain the appeal. Mathis v. St. Louis County Health , 84 S.W.2d 524, 525 (Mo. App. E.D. 2002). In addition, Section 288.210 fails to make any provision for late filing and does not recognize any exceptions for filing out of time. Phillips v. Clean-Tech , 34 S.W.3d 854, 855 (Mo. App. E.D. 2000). The appeal is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Footnotes: FN1. All statutory references are to RSMo 2000, unless otherwise indicated. Separate Opinion: None This slip opinion is subject to revision and may not reflect the final opinion adopted by the Court.