WMAC 2013, LLC, Appellant, v. Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District, Respondent.

WMAC 2013, LLC,

Appellant,

v.

METROPOLITAN ST. LOUIS SEWER DISTRICT, Respondent.

) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

No. ED113312

Appeal from the Circuit Court of St. Louis County The Honorable Nicolette A. Klapp, Judge

Introduction WMAC 2013, LLC (WMAC) appeals the judgment of the trial court quieting title to certain real property (the Property) in favor of WMAC, but subject to a lien for unpaid sewer charges in favor of Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (MSD). WMAC argues the trial court erroneously declared and applied the law in finding MSD's lien survived the tax sale by which WMAC acquired the Property. However, during the pendency of this appeal, the lien was paid in full, rendering the present case moot. We therefore dismiss the appeal. Factual and Procedural Background

This case is nearly identical to a prior case before this Court involving the same two parties: WMAC 2013, LLC v. Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer Dist., 714 S.W.3d 457 (Mo. App. E.D. 2025). As in the prior case, WMAC's predecessor in interest, WMAC 2014, LLC, acquired title to the Property via collector's deed following an administrative foreclosure and subsequent sale of the Property due to unpaid taxes. Thereafter, WMAC 2014, LLC, conveyed the Property to WMAC by special warranty deed. WMAC initiated the underlying action to quiet title in November of 2022. On August 9, 2023, WMAC conveyed the Property by special warranty deed to Vreeland Properties, LLC, who is not a party to this case. In November of 2024, the trial court entered its judgment quieting title to the Property in favor of WMAC, subject to a recorded lien for unpaid sewer charges in favor of MSD. The trial court further noted WMAC's title was subject to a subsequent transfer to Vreeland Properties, LLC. WMAC appealed, arguing the trial court erroneously declared and applied the law to find that MSD's lien survived the tax sale. During the pendency of the present appeal, MSD filed a motion to dismiss the appeal as moot, noting that in January of 2025, the lien had been satisfied by a payment associated with the sale of the Property to a non-party. MSD provided an affidavit by MSD's billing and collections supervisor attesting to the payment of the lien, as well as a release of lien that MSD filed in the trial court. We ordered the motion taken with the case, and we now grant the motion. Discussion "It is well-settled that Missouri courts do not determine moot cases or render advisory opinions." WMAC 2013, 714 S.W.3d at 460 (citing Friends of the San Luis, Inc.

v. Archdiocese of St. Louis, 312 S.W.3d 476, 483 (Mo. App. E.D. 2010)). "When an event occurs that makes a court's decision unnecessary or makes granting effectual relief by the court impossible, the case is moot and generally should be dismissed." Id. (quoting State ex rel. Reed v. Reardon, 41 S.W.3d 470, 473 (Mo. banc 2001)). Here, as in the prior case, satisfaction of MSD's lien on the Property is an intervening event that has rendered the present controversy moot, in that even if we were to find the trial court erred in determining that the lien survived the tax sale, we are unable to grant any effectual relief. See WMAC 2013, 714 S.W.3d at 460. Similarly, as in the prior case, WMAC's argument that we should nevertheless review this case due to the "public-interest" exception is unpersuasive. This narrow exception applies when a case presents "an unsettled legal issue of public interest and importance of a recurring nature that will escape review unless the court exercises its discretionary jurisdiction." Id. at 461 (quoting Friends of the San Luis, 312 S.W.3d at 484). While the legal issue indeed remains unsettled currently, WMAC acknowledges the presence of the same issue affecting many properties in MSD's jurisdiction. We can neither assume there will be no justiciable cases in the future, nor that if one arises, the lien will be satisfied during its course of litigation. Moreover, the Missouri General Assembly amended the relevant statute at issue here, Section 249.255, effective August 27, 2024. The amendment substantially changed the language of the prior statute regarding the priority and enforcement of liens for unpaid sewer charges. The legislation amending this section is currently subject to constitutional challenges raised regarding a provision not relevant to the present case. Whatever the

outcome of such challenges, it is clear the Missouri General Assembly intends to address the legal issue present in the underlying case here. For the foregoing reasons, we grant MSD's motion to dismiss the present case as moot. Conclusion The appeal is dismissed. ___________________________________ G ARY M. GAERTNER, JR., JUDGE

Rebeca Navarro-McKelvey, P.J., James M. Dowd, J., concur.