Wozniak

Plaintiff Michael Wozniak (Wozniak) appeals from judgment in his favor for $25,000, seeking to reinstate a jury verdict in his favor for $58,000, or in the alternative, to vacate the $25,000 judgment as void and to reinstate a prior postverdict order of the “limited jurisdiction” court amending the complaint, declaring a mistrial, and transferring the case to the “unlimited jurisdiction court.” We affirm the judgment, as Wozniak’s contentions are based on misunderstandings of the effects of trial court unification and the legal consequences of pleadings, proceedings, and rulings in this record.

Procedural Background

On September 3, 1999, Wozniak filed in the former municipal court a complaint against Gregory Lucutz for damages for personal injuries and property damage arising out of an automobile accident on September 5, 1998. The complaint sought general and special damages “in amounts not yet determined,” and alleged that “permission of the court will be sought to amend the complaint accordingly when the same has been ascertained.” The prayer alleged that plaintiff “remits judgment in excess of this court’s jurisdiction, for the purpose of being allowed to file in…