Dr. Martin TREPEL, Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee, v. ROADWAY EXPRESS, INC. Defendant-Appellee/Cross-Appellant

194 F.3d 708, 45 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 653, 52 Fed. R. Serv. 1607, 1999 U.S. App. LEXIS 25636, 1999 WL 819749
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedOctober 15, 1999
Docket97-4152, 97-4162
StatusPublished
Cited by200 cases

This text of 194 F.3d 708 (Dr. Martin TREPEL, Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee, v. ROADWAY EXPRESS, INC. Defendant-Appellee/Cross-Appellant) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Dr. Martin TREPEL, Plaintiff-Appellant-Cross-Appellee, v. ROADWAY EXPRESS, INC. Defendant-Appellee/Cross-Appellant, 194 F.3d 708, 45 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 653, 52 Fed. R. Serv. 1607, 1999 U.S. App. LEXIS 25636, 1999 WL 819749 (6th Cir. 1999).

Opinions

RYAN, J., delivered the opinion of the court, in which COLE, J., joined. SUHRHEINRICH, J. (pp. 719-22), delivered a separate opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part.

OPINION

RYAN, Circuit Judge.

Dr. Martin Trepel appeals from the $80,000 damages award when a jury found the defendant, Roadway Express, Inc., ha-ble for damage caused during shipment to a very rare wood carving. Trepel raises three evidentiary issues, claiming that the district court’s erroneous evidentiary rulings require a new trial on damages only.

Roadway cross-appeals, claiming it is not liable at all or, if it is, that its damages should be offset by Trepel’s insurance coverage and/or the limited liability provision in Roadway’s tariffs.

We find no merit in' Roadway’s claims of error on the cross-appeal; therefore, we affirm the district court’s judgment in that regard. However, we do find merit in two of Trepel’s three evidentiary challenges. Namely, we conclude that: (1) under Federal Rule of Evidence 703, the district court abused its discretion by precluding the plaintiffs experts from testifying about the basis for their opinions regarding the worth of the wood carving; and (2) the district court abused its discretion when admitting only a limited portion of Trepel’s deposition testimony, without admitting enough of the surrounding testimony to put the admitted portion of the statement into context, as required by Federal Rule of Evidence 106 and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 32(a)(4).

Accordingly, for the reasons set forth below, we will vacate the jury verdict and remand the case for a new trial on the damages issue only.

[711]*711I.

Trepel purchased a wood carving of a snake, called a Baga serpent, from Mour-tala Diop, a New York artist, for $15,000. Trepel claims this price was significantly lower than the actual value of the carving because Diop was desperate for money. Diop took the carving, which was about seven feet long, to Transfers International Packing & Shipping, Inc. (TIPS) in New Jersey, and paid $150 to have it shipped to Trepel in Arizona. TIPS transported the package to Roadway, and prepared a delivery receipt, noting that the package was a 20-pound sculpture. Mario Castaneda, the owner of TIPS, testified that he does not often engage in domestic shipping, and he has only worked with Roadway once before. TIPS did not tell Roadway the value of the carving, and Roadway never asked for that information. Roadway transported the package to Arizona, and upon being notified of its arrival in Arizona, Trepel sent his housekeeper to retrieve it. She unwrapped the package at the defendant’s business premises and discovered that the carving had been broken into three pieces. The housekeeper refused delivery. About two weeks later, on February 25, 1993, Trepel submitted a claim form to Roadway and was told that he need not do anything further to complete the claim. At the time, Trepel was unaware of the actual value of the carving.

The evidence at trial revealed that the serpent carving is an authentic carving from the Baga tribe in Africa, and was most likely used, during the Baga tribe’s rituals, which makes it even more valuable. One of the plaintiff’s experts appraised the serpent at $2.2 million, stating that it was one of the best in the world.

Some of the experts testified that the best way to determine the value of a carving such as this one is to look at the selling price of comparable pieces. However, several of the best serpent carvings in the world are in private collections and have not been sold recently. Trepel discovered one woman, Shelley Dinhofer, who had a very valuable Baga serpent. She stated in a tape-recorded conversation with Trepel that she had been offered $2 and $2.5 million, respectively, for the serpent, and had turned down both offers. In response to Trepel’s inquiry, she stated that she would sell it for $3 million if she were offered that much.

Roadway denied Trepel’s claim, and so, almost two years after the carving was broken, Trepel sued: (1) his insurance company, with whom he later settled for an undisclosed amount; (2) TIPS, a claim that is still pending; and (3) Roadway. Trepel’s claims against Roadway included theories of- negligence and breach of contract. During the pretrial proceedings, the district court determined that the case is governed by the Carmack Amendment to the Interstate Commerce Act. See 49 U.S.C. § 14706. Section 14706 simply provides that carriers providing transportation are liable to the person entitled to recover under the receipt or bill of lading for actual loss or injury to the property.

The case was tried to a jury, which found that the defendant was liable for the damage to the carving and awarded Trepel $80,000. Being greatly dissatisfied with the amount of the verdict, Trepel moved for a new trial on the damages issue only; the defendant moved for a judgment as a matter of law, formerly a judgment notwithstanding the verdict. The court denied both motions, and this appeal followed.

II.

Roadway raises three issues on appeal, all relating to the Carmack Amendment. All three of the issues were raised in the court below éither in the defendant’s two motions for summary judgment, or its motion for judgment as a matter of law. We will affirm the district court on all three issues.

A:

The first question we must decide is whether 49 C.F.R. § 1005.2(b) precludes [712]*712recovery because the claim form Trepel submitted to • Roadway did not contain a specified or determinable amount as required by the regulation. Section 1005.2(b) provides:

A written ... communication ... from a claimant, filed with a proper carrier within the time limits specified in the bill of lading or contract of carriage or transportation and: (1) Containing facts sufficient to identify the baggage or shipment ... of property, (2) asserting liability for alleged loss, damage, injury, or delay, and (3) making claim for the payment of a specified or determinable amount of money, shall be considered as sufficient compliance with the provisions for filing claims.

In order to resolve this issue, a fuller development of the facts is necessary. After Trepel’s housekeeper discovered that the carving was broken, Trepel filed a cargo loss and damage claim, revealing that Trepel or TIPS had never been given a bill of lading, only a delivery receipt. On the. back of the claim form were various regulations regarding the Carmack Amendment, 49 U.S.C. § 14706, including 49 C.F.R. § 1005.2(b). In the place where Trepel was to specify the amount of the loss or damage, he inserted, “to be determined but not to exceed $150,000.00.” In due course, Roadway moved for summary judgment, claiming that strict compliance with the claim filing requirement is necessary for the plaintiffs prima facie case.

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194 F.3d 708, 45 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 653, 52 Fed. R. Serv. 1607, 1999 U.S. App. LEXIS 25636, 1999 WL 819749, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dr-martin-trepel-plaintiff-appellant-cross-appellee-v-roadway-express-ca6-1999.