Fender v. Trapuzzano

16 Pa. D. & C.4th 579, 1992 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 177
Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Washington County·Decided August 4, 1992·No. No. 90-1545·Published

Opinion

RODGERS, S.J.,

This case is before the court en banc on motion of the defendants, Sylvia A. Trapuzzano, and the Pennsylvania State Lottery, to dismiss, because this court lacks subject matter jurisdiction.

On April 26, 1989, the Super 7 drawing of the Pennsylvania State Lottery was worth in excess of $115 million. The defendant, Sylvia A. Trapuzzano, presented one of 14 winning tickets to lottery officials, each winning ticket being worth in excess of $8 million, payable by the Pennsylvania State Lottery in 26 annual payments of $317,524.67. The plaintiff, Gary P. Fender claimed that the defendant, Sylvia A. Trapuzzano, with whom he had [580]*580lived for about five years, had promised to share the proceeds equally, which the defendant Trapuzzano denied.

After an extended trial, the jury awarded the plaintiff, Gary P. Fender 50 percent of the proceeds collected by Sylvia Trapuzzano to the date of the jury’s verdict, which the parties agree amount to $476,287 and, in addition, 50 percent of the 23 annual payments remaining.

In addition to seeking post trial relief, the defendant Trapuzzano now seeks to nullify the jury’s verdict on the grounds that the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has exclusive original jurisdiction in this case because the Pennsylvania State Lottery is also party defendant and is an indispensable party to this action.

The Pennsylvania State Lottery has joined in the motion of Trapuzzano to dismiss because of lack of subject matter jurisdiction in this court.

For reasons hereinafter stated, the motion of the defendants to dismiss on grounds of lack of subject matter jurisdiction is denied.

At the trial of this matter, the parties, by their then counsel, had no difficulty in defining the issue to be decided by the jury.

In his opening statement, counsel for the plaintiff, Gary P. Fender, said this:

“This is really a very, very simple case. It involves a claim by my client, that while he, Gary Fender, and the defendant, Sylvia Trapuzzano, were living together as an engaged couple, that they hit the Super 7 Lottery for $8,255,641, payable in 26 equal installments of $317,524.67. It happened on April 26,1989, and as I’m sure those of you who play the Lottery know, it happened [581]*581at 7 p.m. Almost all of the important events in this whole case happened within an hour of that time. That’s the time that is really the crucial part of this case.
“Subsequent to that time, there has been two payments to the defendant, Sylvia Trapuzzano, of $635,049.34, and there is an on-going obligation of the Commonwealth to continue those payments.
“In order for you to understand what happened within the few minutes of the hour, which I call the critical hour, we will offer testimony dealing with the relationship between Gary Fender and Sylvia Trapuzzano.... [W]e have two very simple theories about why we are here. The first one is a simple contract. Gary contends that he gave up his right to sign the ticket, in his hand, as a claimant, in return for a promise from Sylvia to him, in his living room, or her living room, or their living room, to share the proceeds equally. It’s our theory that if that promise was made, and she really meant it, then it’s a contract, and if she doesn’t live up to it, then it’s a breach of contract and she owes him.
“Our second theory is called fraudulent misrepresentation. If she made the same promise at the same time, and even then knew she wasn’t going to share, that’s called fraudulent inducement. ‘ Give back the ticket, don’t sign it,’ and the damages are the same, but we have two separate theories. Whether she intended to carry out the. promise and then decided later not to, or if it was fraudulent inducement, it comes out the same way either way. If you find she made the promise and she breached it, there are two theories that say he is entitled to one-half of the proceeds.
[582]*582“The Pennsylvania Lottery is included in this case because it’s a really unusual situation. When you file a claim to sign the back of the ticket, and you’ll hear all about that, you come to claim it and then they owe money to the claimant, the person who signs the ticket. The ticket is very important; the most important single thing. They are here because while we are seeking to share in the money she’s already received, we are seeking what is called a declaratory judgment that for the next 24 years, when they pay the money, they must share it according to our version of the facts.”

In the course of his opening statement then counsel for the defendant Trapuzzano said this:

“This is not about $8 million, or a red Porsche; this is about whether or not there was an agreement between Sylvia Trapuzzano and Gary Fender, and you don’t get to the $8 million question at all, unless you first find that such an agreement existed. I would ask you, respectfully, not to focus on what is a substantial amount of money, but to focus on what the real substantive issue in this case is.”

In his closing argument, counsel for defendant Trapuzzano, said this:

“The issue is, did Gary Fender and Sylvia Trapuzzano enter into an agreement, a contract, on April 26, 1989, at the time the ticket was signed. That’s the issue that you have to deal with. All of the other information that you’ve heard goes to the credibility of the parties, to be sure, but is not the issue in the case. What you need to address is, was there a contract; was there an agreement; was there a meeting of the minds.”

[583]*583In his closing argument, counsel for plaintiff Fender, said this:

“What is Gary’s theory of recovery? Gary Fender contends that he and Sylvia were living together, sharing expenses; they were engaged to be married, and he contends that with his knowledge, Sylvia picked up their lottery tickets on her way home from work. He contends that after they found out they hit the numbers, Sylvia signed the ticket, and as he prepared to sign the ticket, she told him he should let her sign the ticket alone; that his ex-wives would take him over the coals, and if he returned the ticket to her, unsigned, she promised to share the money equally with him. She said some other things. She said they were getting married anyway, and Gary should trust her, and so on and so forth.
“Gary contends that’s what she said and it’s Gary’s contention that he did what she asked; that he gave her back the ticket and didn’t sign it and allowed her to claim the prize.
“We seek to enforce that promise here and to recover $476,287, which is half of what she got so far, and recover one-half of each of the next 23 installments. She gets $317,524 right now from the state.

Our theory is one of a simple, oral contract. It’s uncomplicated. We can’t reach into her mind and show you whether she really intended to breach it at the moment she promised him, or whether she decided later not to live up to her promise. That really doesn’t make any difference. The fact is, she breached a promise, and Gary relied on that promise and gave her back the ticket.”

In the course of his charge, the trial judge said this:

[584]

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Fender v. Trapuzzano, 16 Pa. D. & C.4th 579, 1992 Pa. Dist. & Cnty. Dec. LEXIS 177 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1992).

16 Pa. D. & C.4th 579 (Fender v. Trapuzzano) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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