Allen v. Stephens

875 So. 2d 1207, 2003 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 713, 2003 WL 22221311
CourtCourt of Civil Appeals of Alabama
DecidedSeptember 26, 2003
Docket2020363
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 875 So. 2d 1207 (Allen v. Stephens) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Allen v. Stephens, 875 So. 2d 1207, 2003 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 713, 2003 WL 22221311 (Ala. Ct. App. 2003).

Opinion

YATES, Presiding Judge.

Yvonnda Stephens1 sued Thomas W. Allen and his wife, Jean K. Allen, on September 5, 2000, alleging negligence and wantonness and seeking to recover damages for injuries she sustained while on the premises of certain real property owned by the Allens and leased to their son, Fred Allen. The Allens answered on October 24, 2000.

On April 16, 2001, the Allens moved for a summary judgment, which the trial court denied on December 5, 2001. The Allens renewed their motion for a summary judgment on May 10, 2002; the trial court denied the renewed motion for a summary judgment on June 24, 2002.

On June 12, 2001, Stephens amended her complaint to add Fred Allen2 and his roommate, Jeffrey Cullifer, as defendants. Cullifer did not answer the complaint, and a default judgment was entered against him on November 20, 2001.

The case proceeded to trial against the Alens and their son Fred. At the close of Stephens’s case, the Allens moved for a preverdict judgment as a matter of law (“JML”) as to both the negligence claim and the wantonness claim. The trial court granted the motion as to the wantonness claim, but it denied the motion as to the negligence claim. The Alens renewed their motion for a preverdict JML at the close of all the evidence, which the trial court denied. On October 3, 2002, the jury [1208]*1208returned a verdict in favor of Stephens and against the Allens and Fred in the amount of $15,800. The trial court entered a judgment on the verdict on October 7, 2002. On November 4, 2002, the Allens moved the court for a postverdict JML, or, in the alternative, for a new trial. The trial court denied the Allens’ postjudgment motion on October 19, 2002; the Allens appeal.3

The Allens argue on appeal that the trial court erred in denying their motion for a JML. The standard of review for a motion for a JML, under the current version of Rule 50, Ala. R. Civ. P., is the same as the standard for review of a motion for a directed verdict and a motion for a JNOV under Rule 50 as it read before the October 1, 1995, amendment.4 See Montgomery Coca-Cola Bottling Co., Ltd. v. Golson, 725 So.2d 996 (Ala.Civ.App.1998).

Our supreme court has stated:

“When reviewing a ruling on a motion for a JML, this Court uses the same standard the trial court used initially in granting or denying a JML. Palm Harbor Homes, Inc. v. Crawford, 689 So.2d 3 (Ala.1997). Regarding questions of fact, the ultimate question is whether the nonmovant has presented sufficient evidence to allow the case or the issue to be submitted to the jury for a factual resolution. Carter v. Henderson, 598 So.2d 1350 (Ala.1992). For actions filed after June 11, 1987, the nonmovant must present ‘substantial evidence’ in order to withstand a motion for a JML. See § 12-21-12, Ala.Code 1975; West v. Founders Life Assurance Co. of Florida, 547 So.2d 870, 871 (Ala.1989). A reviewing court must determine whether the party who bears the burden of proof has produced substantial evidence creating a factual dispute requiring resolution by the jury. Carter, 598 So.2d at 1353. In reviewing a ruling on a motion for a JML, this Court views the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmov-ant and entertains such reasonable inferences as the jury would have been free to draw. Motion Industries, Inc. v. Pate, 678 So.2d 724 (Ala.1996). Regarding a question of law, however, this Court indulges no presumption of correctness as to the trial court’s ruling. Ricwil, Inc. v. S.L. Pappas & Co., 599 So.2d 1126 (Ala.1992).”

Delchamps, Inc. v. Bryant, 738 So.2d 824, 830 (Ala.1999).

The evidence, when viewed in a light most favorable to Stephens, indicates the following: The Allens purchased a house located at 3529 Eighth Avenue South in Birmingham in January 1997. Before purchasing the house, the Allens inspected it and determined that certain repairs needed to be made to the house. The Allens repaired the roof, the gutters, and the back porch, and they also painted the house. The house has a concrete driveway that leads from the street to the rear of the house. The driveway is on a slight upgrade. Approximately halfway up the driveway, and on the right side of the driveway as you face the house from the street,5 the concrete is cracked and uneven with an elevation change of approximately three to five inches.

The Allens leased the house to their son Fred in February 1997. The crack in the [1209]*1209driveway existed at the time the Allens purchased the house, and the Allens and Fred were aware of the crack at the time they entered into the lease agreement. The term of the lease was from February 1, 1997, to February 1, 1999; Fred was required to pay the Allens $600 per month under the terms of the lease. The lease agreement contained the following provision:

“12. Maintenance and Repair. Lessee will, at his sole expense, keep and maintain the leased premises and appurtenances in good and sanitary condition and repair during the term of this lease and any renewal thereof. In particular, Lessee shall keep the fixtures in the house or on or about the leased premises in good order and repair; keep the furnace clean; keep the electric bells in order; keep the walks free from dirt and debris; and, at his sole expense, shall make all required repairs to the plumbing, range, heating, apparatus, and electric and gas fixtures whenever damage thereto shall have resulted from Lessee’s misuse, waste, or neglect or that of his employee, family, agent, or visitor. Major maintenance and repair of the leased premises, not due to Lessee’s misuse, waste, or neglect or that of his employee, family, agent, or visitor, shall be the responsibility of Lessor or his assigns. Lessee agrees that no signs shall be placed or painting done on or about the leased premises by Lessee or at his direction without the prior written consent of Lessor.”

Jean and Fred both testified at the trial that it was the Allens who were responsible for doing any “major repairs” to the premises. Fred never requested that the driveway be repaired, and the Allens never undertook to repair the driveway. After the term of the lease expired, Fred began leasing the house from the Allens on a “month-to-month” basis.

In May 1999, Cullifer moved into the house with Fred. Fred and Cullifer decided to have a yard sale on May 27, 2000. The items sold in the yard sale belonged to Fred and Cullifer. The Allens sold no property in the yard sale and derived no benefit from it. Fred and Cullifer did not ask the Allens for permission before having the yard sale, and the Allens had no knowledge of the yard sale until approximately seven days after it had occurred. Fred advertised the yard sale by placing an ad in the newspaper and by posting signs in the neighborhood.

Kenneth Tinsley, who was Stephens’s boyfriend at the time, attended the yard sale on the morning of May 27, 2000, and noticed a sofa that he thought Stephens might be interested in purchasing. Tins-ley returned to the yard sale with Stephens in the early afternoon so that Stephens could look at the sofa. Stephens wore clogs with no heel straps to the yard sale. Stephens and Tinsley parked on the street and walked up the left side of the driveway to the rear of the house. Stephens testified that two vehicles were parked in the driveway as they approached the house.

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Bluebook (online)
875 So. 2d 1207, 2003 Ala. Civ. App. LEXIS 713, 2003 WL 22221311, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/allen-v-stephens-alacivapp-2003.