Spann v. Davis

Summary

The court held that a trial court may not sua sponte dismiss a complaint based on an affirmative defense that the defendant neither pleaded nor raised by motion when the defense is not apparent from the pleadings as a matter of law. It further held that quasi-judicial immunity is an affirmative defense, not a subject-matter jurisdictional bar, and that the defendants had not waived it merely by omitting it from their initial pleading and motion. The court reversed the first division of the Court of Appeals’ decision, vacated the second division, and remanded for further proceedings without deciding whether quasi-judicial immunity ultimately applies.