Denzik v. Denzik

197 S.W.3d 108, 2006 Ky. LEXIS 166, 2006 WL 1650564
CourtKentucky Supreme Court
DecidedJune 15, 2006
Docket2004-SC-1131-DG
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 197 S.W.3d 108 (Denzik v. Denzik) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Kentucky Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Denzik v. Denzik, 197 S.W.3d 108, 2006 Ky. LEXIS 166, 2006 WL 1650564 (Ky. 2006).

Opinions

WINTERSHIMER, Justice.

This appeal is from an opinion of the Court of Appeals which reversed a judgment based on a jury verdict rendered against Blazar for fraudulent misrepresentation.

The questions presented are whether there is sufficient evidence of fraudulent misrepresentation; and whether the statute of limitations bars the claim. Other issues relate to the question of so-called paternity fraud and the matter of whether promises between married partners should be supervised by the court system.

The parties were originally married in 1981 and later divorced in May of 1984. They remarried in December of 1984 and were divorced in March 1990. During the second marriage, Blazar gave birth to a daughter in June of 1987. The parties lived together as a family until the 1990 divorce. Denzik was ordered to pay weekly child support for the one child. Blazar was awarded custody of the child subject to regular visitation by Denzik.

This action arose after Blazar disclosed to Denzik in September 2000, that the child was the product of an extramarital affair with a former boyfriend. Blazar requested the former boyfriend to undergo a DNA paternity test which indicated that the child was the product of the extramarital affair and not Denzik’s. When it was determined that Denzik was not the biological father of the child, he successfully obtained a termination of child support obligations from the circuit court. On December 18, 2000, Denzik filed a civil action in the circuit court seeking damages for the fraudulent misrepresentation of the paternity of the child to him.

At trial, Blazar testified that she saw a picture of her ex-boyfriend’s daughter in a local newspaper in 2000 and claimed to notice a similarity between that child and her own daughter who was 13 years old at the time. Blazar asked her former boyfriend to take a paternity test which he did. The result was a determination that the child born during the marriage of Den-[110]*110zik and Blazar was in fact fathered by the ex-boyfriend.

Denzik testified that he had suspected that Blazar had been unfaithful to him during the marriage but she had denied such conduct when questioned about it. The jury found Blazar guilty of fraud and awarded Denzik damages in the sum of $54,720.26. This represented a demand by Denzik for all child support payments made by him for the support of the child for the past five years. The Court of Appeals reversed the jury verdict. This Court granted discretionary review.

I. Standard of Review

When reviewing a jury verdict, the appelláte court is restricted to determining whether the trial judge erred in failing to grant a motion for directed verdict. The reviewing court must consider all evidence favoring the prevailing party as true and is not at liberty to determine the credibility or weight which should be given to the evidence. Lewis v. Bledsoe Surface Mining Co., 798 S.W.2d 459 (Ky.1990). The reviewing court must draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the claimant, refrain from questioning the credibility of the claimant, and from assessing the weight which should be given to any particular item of evidence. United Parcel Service Co. v. Rickert, 996 S.W.2d 464 (Ky.1999). The reviewing court may reverse the verdict of the jury only when it is so flagrantly against the weight of the evidence as to indicate passion or prejudice. Bierman v. Klapheke, 967 S.W.2d 16 (Ky.1998). Rickert, supra, held that in an action for fraud, the claimant must establish six elements: 1) a material misrepresentation; 2) which is false; 3) known to be false or made recklessly; 4) made with inducement to be acted upon; and 5) acted in reliance thereon and causing injury. In developing the proof, consideration must be given to the character of the testimony, the coherency of the entire case as well as the documents, circumstances and facts presented. Rickert.

CR 9.02 must also be considered because it sets out that “in all averments of fraud or mistake, the circumstances constituting fraud or mistake shall be stated with particularity.”

II. CR 9.02 — Particularity

Compliance with the particularity required by CR 9.02 merely commands that the claimant set forth facts with sufficient particularity to apprise the defendant fairly of the charges against him or her. See Scott v. Farmers State Bank, 410 S.W.2d 717 (Ky.1966). As noted in Scott, supra, the rule requiring pleading of fraud with particularity is to be considered in the light of the entire spirit of modern pleading which lays emphasis on short, concise and direct pleadings. See United States v. Dittrich, 3 F.R.D. 475 (E.D.Ky.1943). As in Scott, Blazar in this case did not seek a more definite and certain statement or bill of particulars as permitted by CR 12.05. In addition, there is no suggestion that Blazar suffered surprise or prejudice when evidence was presented which had not been detailed in the complaint. Under this circumstance, we do not accept the argument of Blazar. A pleading is sufficient if it identifies the circumstances constituting fraud so that the defendant can prepare an adequate answer from the allegations. See Gottreich v. San Francisco Inv. Corp., 552 F.2d 866 (9th Cir.1977).

In Kellerman v. Vaughan, 408 S.W.2d 415 (Ky.1966), a malicious prosecution action, Commissioner Clay observed that it has been stated that a court should not dismiss a claim unless it appears the plaintiff would not be entitled to relief under any state of facts which could be proved in [111]*111support of it. See also Ewell v. Central City, 340 S.W.2d 479 (Ky.1960).

Here, we are of the view that the complaint was sufficient to give the defendant adequate notice of claims against her. The testimony at trial indicates that she fully understood the nature of the claims. We find no error in regard to the application of CR 9.02. The underlying purpose of the particularity requirement is to provide the defendant with fair notice of the claim in order that he or she may prepare an appropriate response. It must be remembered that general assertions of fraud or fraudulent conduct do not provide the notice that is required and are consequently insufficient to raise the question of fraud without supporting particularity. Cf. Perma Res. & Dev. Co. v. Singer Co., 410 F.2d 572 (2nd Cir.1969).

III. Statute of Limitations

In view of the fact that we believe that fraudulent misrepresentation arose in this case, we find that it was ongoing to the extent that the conduct of Blazar came within the applicable statute of limitations set out in KRS 413.130(3).

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

Related

Shelby Fuel Corporation v. James S. Hamilton
Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2024
Ijeoma Odigwe v. Honorable Jay Wethington
Kentucky Supreme Court, 2022
Pasley v. Biggs
W.D. Kentucky, 2020
Danny Waugh v. Kevin Scott Felty
Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2020
Large v. Oberson
537 S.W.3d 336 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2017)
Alph C. Kaufman, Inc. v. Cornerstone Indus. Corp.
540 S.W.3d 803 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2017)
Mansfield v. Neff
31 Mass. L. Rptr. 616 (Massachusetts Superior Court, 2014)
Ipock v. Ipock
403 S.W.3d 580 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2013)
Tina Marie Hodge v. Chadwick Craig
382 S.W.3d 325 (Tennessee Supreme Court, 2012)
Joseph O. Dier v. Cassandra Jo Peters
815 N.W.2d 1 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 2012)
Baston v. County of Kenton Ex Rel. Kenton County Airport Board
319 S.W.3d 401 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 2010)
Stone v. Atherton (In Re Stone)
421 B.R. 401 (W.D. Kentucky, 2009)
RT Vanderbilt Co., Inc. v. Franklin
290 S.W.3d 654 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2009)
Consolidated Infrastructure Management Authority, Inc. v. Allen
269 S.W.3d 852 (Kentucky Supreme Court, 2008)
Broughton v. Adams Pontiac Buick GMC Truck, Inc.
272 F. App'x 491 (Sixth Circuit, 2008)
Calfee v. Commonwealth Cabinet for Health & Families
230 S.W.3d 601 (Court of Appeals of Kentucky, 2007)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
197 S.W.3d 108, 2006 Ky. LEXIS 166, 2006 WL 1650564, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/denzik-v-denzik-ky-2006.