Ex parte Steve Marshall

Summary

The Supreme Court of Alabama held that the Attorney General properly invoked the circuit court's subject-matter jurisdiction to enforce a charitable trust whose beneficiaries were not specifically designated. The court further held that the circuit court exceeded its discretion by referring the entire consolidated litigation to a special master without finding an exceptional condition required for nonjury matters or explaining why the accounting would be complicated. The court granted both mandamus petitions and ordered the circuit court to vacate the referral order.