Bostick v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co.

321 F.R.D. 414, 2017 WL 2791516
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Florida
DecidedJune 28, 2017
DocketCase No. 8:16-cv-1400-T-33AAS
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 321 F.R.D. 414 (Bostick v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bostick v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co., 321 F.R.D. 414, 2017 WL 2791516 (M.D. Fla. 2017).

Opinion

ORDER

VIRGINIA M. HERNANADEZ COVINGTON, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

This cause is before the Court pursuant to Defendant State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company’s Motion to Strike Plaintiffs Expert Steven Koontz’s Opinions and [416]*416Testimony (Doc. #54), filed May 4, 2017, Plaintiff Lisa N. Bostick filed a Response in Opposition to State Farm’s Motion on June 5, 2017 (Doc. #61), and State Farm filed a Reply on June 19, 2017. (Doc. # 68). For the reasons that follow, the Court denies the Motion.

I. Background

Bostick filed her Complaint in state court against State Farm seeking payment of un-derinsured motorist benefits as the result of a car accident that occurred on November 14, 2013. (Doc. #2). State Farm removed the case on June 2, 2016, based on complete diversity of citizenship. (Doc. # 1).

On June 29, 2016, the Court entered its Case Management and Scheduling Order setting December 19, 2016, as Bostick’s deadline to disclose expert reports. (Doc. # 13). Later, Bostick filed an Unopposed Motion for Extension of Time to Complete Discovery which the Court granted by extending Bostick’s expert disclosure deadline to February 14, 2017. (Doc. ## 34-35).

Bostick has retained professional engineer, Steven Koontz, P.E., to offer expert testimony at trial. (Doc. # 54). On February 13, 2017, Bostick provided Koontz’s “Traffic Crash Investigation Report” to State Farm, which contains Koontz’s analysis and conclusions regarding the physics of the collision and forces that affected Bostick’s body. (Doc. # 54-1).

At this juncture, State Farm seeks an Order striking Koontz’s testimony and opinions on the grounds that (1) his opinions are not based upon sufficient facts or data and (2) will not help the trier of fact to understand or determine a fact in issue. (Doc. # 54 at 2). State Farm also argues that Koontz’s opinions should be stricken because they are either: “not actually opinions, but simply a statement of undisputed facts; irrelevant; speculative; solely for the purpose of bolstering; unfairly prejudicial; or a combination of these reasons for inadmissibility.” (Doc. # 53 at 2-3). The Court will first evaluate whether Koontz’s testimony satisfies the evidentiary rules for expert testimony by conducting a Daubert analysis. The Court will then assess the relevance and admissibility of his testimony.

II. Daubert Analysis

Federal Rule of Evidence 702, which governs the admissibility of expert testimony, states that:

A witness who is qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education may testify in the form of an opinion or otherwise if: (a) the expert’s scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue; (b) the testimony is based on sufficient facts or data; (c) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods; and (d) the expert has reliably applied the principles and methods to the facts of the case.

Fed. R. Evid. 702.

When a party raises an objection to an expert’s testimony, the Court must perform its gatekeeping duty to determine whether the expert testimony “is not only relevant, but reliable.” Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharm., 509 U.S. 579, 589, 113 S.Ct. 2786, 125 L.Ed.2d 469 (1993). When deciding Daubert issues, the trial judge has broad discretion in how the review is conducted. Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael, 526 U.S. 137, 152, 119 S.Ct. 1167, 143 L.Ed.2d 238 (1999). Usually, “the rejection of expert testimony is the exception rather than the rule.” See Advisory Committee Notes to the 2000 Amendment to Rule 702.

The Eleventh Circuit has adopted a three-part analysis for determining whether expert testimony is admissible under Dau-bert and Rule 702:

To fulfill their obligation under Daubert, district courts must engage in a rigorous inquiry to determine whether: (1) the expert is qualified to testify competently regarding the matters he intends to address; (2) the methodology by which the expert reaches his conclusions is sufficiently reliable as determined by the sort of inquiry mandated in Daubert; and (3) the testimony assists the trier of fact, through the application of scientific, technical, or spe[417]*417cialized expertise, to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue.

Rink v. Cheminova, Inc., 400 F.3d 1286, 1291-92 (11th Cir. 2006) (internal citations omitted). The party offering the expert has the burden of satisfying each of these elements by a preponderance of the evidence. Id. at 1292; see also Allison v. McGhan Med. Corp., 184 F.3d 1300, 1306 (11th Cir. 1999).

A.Koontz is Qualified

Koontz is a senior forensic engineer at Florida Forensic Engineering. (Doc. # 54-2 at 2). He obtained a Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue University and is licensed as an engineer in Florida, (Id. at 3). Based on these credentials, State Farm does not challenge that Koontz is qualified as an expert in the fields of engineering and physics. Therefore, the Court concludes that Koontz is qualified to testify competently regarding the Traffic Crash Investigation Report and the first prong of the Daubert analysis is satisfied.

B,Koontz’s Methodology

Koontz determined the forces exerted upon Bostick during the collision by reviewing supplied materials, photographs of the accident, and a property damage estimate. (Doc. #61 at 6). Koontz utilized these sources to conduct his calculations and analysis. (Id.). The reconstruction approach used by Koontz has been peer reviewed and is one of the accepted engineering methodologies regularly used by experts in the field. (Id.). But, State Farm seeks to exclude Koontz’s expert testimony because it is based on speculation and “mere guess work” instead of sufficient facts or data, (Doc. #54 at 3-4),

The majority of State Farm’s arguments rely upon the assertion that Koontz erroneously assumed there was damage to the bumper structure and used this fact in his calculations. (Id. at 3-6). The Court is not convinced Koontz’s opinions and testimony should be stricken. In Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp. v. GMAC Mortgage Corp., No. 5:05-cv-260-Oc-GRJ, 2008 WL 3819752, at *5 (M.D. Fla. Aug. 12, 2008), the court noted:

[T]hese arguments go more to the weight of the evidence, than the admissibility of the evidence under Daubert. The Court need not determine that the expert [defendant] seeks to offer into evidence is irrefutable or certainly correct. The certainty and correctness of [the expert’s] opinion will be tested through cross-examination and presentation of contrary evidence and not by a Daubert challenge. Indeed the Court’s role as gatekeeper is not intended to supplant the adversary system or the role of the jury.

Id.

The reasoning adopted in Taylor, Bean & Whitaker is applicable here.

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Bluebook (online)
321 F.R.D. 414, 2017 WL 2791516, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bostick-v-state-farm-mutual-automobile-insurance-co-flmd-2017.