BEYRER v. THE MULE

2021 OK 45, 496 P.3d 983
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedSeptember 28, 2021
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 2021 OK 45 (BEYRER v. THE MULE) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
BEYRER v. THE MULE, 2021 OK 45, 496 P.3d 983 (Okla. 2021).

Opinion

BEYRER v. THE MULE
Skip to Main Content Accessibility Statement
OSCN Found Document:BEYRER v. THE MULE
  1. Previous Case
  2. Top Of Index
  3. This Point in Index
  4. Citationize
  5. Next Case
  6. Print Only

BEYRER v. THE MULE
2021 OK 45
496 P.3d 983
Case Number: 118075
Decided: 09/28/2021
THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA


Cite as: 2021 OK 45, 496 P.3d 983

OMEGA BEYRER, Personal Representative of the ESTATE OF FRANCIS CHARLENE JOHNSON, Plaintiff/Appellant,
v.
THE MULE, LLC, Defendant/Appellee.

CERTIORARI TO THE OKLAHOMA COURT OF CIVIL APPEALS, DIVISION NO. I

0 Plaintiff filed an action based upon premises liability, and a jury verdict for defendant was followed by an order granting costs. Plaintiff filed a motion for new trial alleging juror misconduct during voir dire. The motion for new trial was denied by the Honorable Aletia Haynes Timmons, District Judge, District Court for Oklahoma County. Plaintiff appealed the order denying the motion for new trial and the order granting costs. The Court of Civil Appeals, Division I, reversed the order denying a new trial, and reversed the order granting costs. The Oklahoma Supreme Court previously granted the defendant's petition for certiorari seeking review of the Court of Civil Appeals' opinion on the issue of juror misconduct and plaintiff's motion for new trial. We hold: When a trial court adjudicates a motion for new trial based upon a juror's silence during voir dire concerning the juror's litigation history, the trial court may examine the nature of the juror's prior litigation to determine if it is material to the action then before the trial court. We also hold a juror's conduct did not rise to conduct affecting materially the substantial rights of the party when the juror failed to state on voir dire in a premises liability controversy his status as a named defendant in a motor vehicle case fourteen years earlier when (1) he was a minor, (2) he did not talk to a lawyer or participate in the prior action in any manner, and (3) the record shows both the prior action was settled shortly after filing and no economic detriment suffered by the juror/defendant as a result of the litigation. We further hold: The portion of the opinion by the Court of Civil Appeals which reversed the District Court's order adjudicating costs is not disturbed on certiorari review, and this reversal of costs is incorporated into the appellate mandate.

CERTIORARI PREVIOUSLY GRANTED; OPINION OF THE COURT OF CIVIL
APPEALS VACATED IN PART; OPINION OF THE COURT OF CIVIL APPEALS
WITHDRAWN FROM PUBLICATION; ORDER OF THE DISTRICT COURT
DENYING MOTION FOR NEW TRIAL AFFIRMED;
ORDER OF DISTRICT COURT GRANTING COSTS REVERSED;
CAUSE REMANDED FOR FURTHER PROCEEDINGS

David Bernstein, Bernstein Law Firm, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for Plaintiff/Appellant.

Brad Miller, Weston H. White, Jami Rhoades Antonisse, Miller & Johnson, PLLC, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for Defendant/Appellee.

EDMONDSON, J.

¶1 The question presented is whether a District Court may examine the circumstances of a juror's prior litigation history for the purpose of determining whether the juror's failure to disclose this history during voir dire did not affect materially the substantial rights of a party. We answer in the affirmative. Plaintiff filed a motion for new trial based upon a juror's silence to two questions relating to prior litigation history which the voir dire panel was asked by defendant. Plaintiff argues the juror's silence denied her an opportunity to make an informed challenge to the juror and that she is entitled to a new trial. We conclude a trial court's adjudication of a motion for new trial may include an examination of the circumstances of the juror's litigation history when the motion is based upon a prospective juror's failure to disclose litigation history during voir dire. We affirm the District Court's denial of plaintiff's motion for new trial.

¶2 Francis Johnson and her sister, Omega Beyrer, visited a restaurant where Johnson fell and suffered a fractured hip. Johnson brought an action based upon premises liability against The Mule LLC (Restaurant) in the District Court of Oklahoma County and a jury trial was held in February 2019. The jury returned a verdict determining Johnson was 74% negligent and Restaurant 24% negligent, and awarded no damages to Johnson. Johnson filed a motion for new trial.

¶3 Johnson's motion for new trial asserted the jury foreman, D. K., had failed during voir dire to disclose his prior involvement as a defendant in an Oklahoma County tort action in 2005. D. K. was named with his father as defendants in a 2005 action which alleged D. K. used his father's automobile which resulted in an automobile collision. The collision and 2005 action occurred when D. K. was a minor. In 2019 at the time of Johnson's trial, D. K. was married, he had two minor children, and he was employed as the human resource director for a school.

¶4 The trial court denied plaintiff's motion for new trial. Restaurant also sought costs from plaintiff. Dr. S. was Johnson's expert witness for the trial. Restaurant paid a $3,000.00 fee for Dr. S. to appear and testify at trial instead of Johnson's lawyer reading Dr. S.'s deposition to the jury at the trial. After the verdict, Restaurant sought an award for the fee it paid to Dr. S. for the trial appearance. The trial court granted Restaurant's motion for costs which included an amount of $1,500.00 for one-half of Dr. S.'s fee.

¶5 Johnson died and Beyrer was substituted as the plaintiff. Beyrer appealed the trial court's denial of the motion for a new trial and the trial court's award of $1,500.00 for one-half of Dr. S.'s fee.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

HOWARD and HOWARD v. THE BARRINGTON HOMEOWNERS
2026 OK 9 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2026)
SANDERS v. TURN KEY HEALTH CLINICS
2025 OK 19 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2025)
KNOX v. OKLAHOMA GAS AND ELECTRIC CO.
2024 OK 37 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2024)
IN THE MATTER OF E.J.T.
2024 OK 14 (Supreme Court of Oklahoma, 2024)
CITY OF TULSA v. FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE
2023 OK CIV APP 29 (Court of Civil Appeals of Oklahoma, 2023)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2021 OK 45, 496 P.3d 983, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/beyrer-v-the-mule-okla-2021.