Garcia v. Home Indemnity Company

474 S.W.2d 535, 1971 Tex. App. LEXIS 3011
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 22, 1971
DocketNo. 8209
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 474 S.W.2d 535 (Garcia v. Home Indemnity Company) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Garcia v. Home Indemnity Company, 474 S.W.2d 535, 1971 Tex. App. LEXIS 3011 (Tex. Ct. App. 1971).

Opinion

REYNOLDS, Justice.

Adam Garcia filed a claim with the Industrial Accident Board for injuries received in the course of his employment. An award was entered for him against The Home Indemnity Company, the compensation insurance carrier. Refusing to abide by the award, Home Indemnity timely filed suit to set aside the award, naming Garcia as defendant. Garcia answered and filed a cross-action for compensation for total and permanent disability. Trial came on before a jury. Judgment was entered on the jury’s findings that Garcia suffered total, temporary disability for nine weeks, followed by partial, temporary disability for 150 weeks. Garcia has appealed, bringing forth assignments of error of jury misconduct and realignment of the parties over objection.

Garcia’s first assignment of jury misconduct is predicated on the contention that the jury considered a statement to the effect that Garcia could get a job with a state agency regardless of his physical condition or age. Seven of the twelve jurors who returned the verdict testified at the hearing on Garcia’s motion for new trial, and they were not in complete agreement about the matter. The jurors were agreed that there was some reference to whether a man could apply to a state agency for employment; they were not in agreement as to whether the subject was raised in the form of a statement or a question, or whether the reference was that a man could obtain work or only could seek work. The jury had deliberated some eight hours during a part of two days before reaching a verdict. The jurors were divided on whether the matter arose on the first or second day, and did not agree on which issue was being discussed at the time. The jurors fixed the period of time consumed by the subject matter from 20 seconds to not more than two or three minutes. All of the jurors testified that either the foreman or some other member of the jury cautioned them that matters not in evidence could not be considered, and that after the admonition there was no further reference to the subject. The trial judge denied the motion for new trial without being requested to make and file, or making and filing, express findings of fact.

The evidence is conflicting as to what was said and in what form, when it was said and what issue was being discussed at the time. The evidence is undisputed that when the subject was injected, there was a prompt admonition by either the foreman or some other juror not to consider the matter and reference to the subject was not thereafter made. Under this undisputed evidence, the mere injection of the subject matter for a time of from 20 seconds to three minutes during eight hours of deliberation, promptly followed by an admonition that the matter was not to be considered, with no further reference being made to the subject, does not constitute such misconduct as would require a reversal of the judgment based on the jury’s verdict. Putman v. Lazarus, 156 Tex. 154, 293 S.W.2d 493 (1956).

Since the trial judge was not requested to, and did not, make express findings of fact with reference to the events occurring [537]*537during the jury’s deliberation, we are required to presume that he found, in support of his overruling the motion for new trial, as a fact that jury misconduct requiring a new trial did not occur. Were we to disregard the undisputed evidence and look only to the conflicting evidence, the result is the same. We must presume, since no express findings were made, that the trial court found all controverted facts in support of its implied finding that no jury misconduct occurred, which finding is conclusive on appeal. Brawley v. Bowen, 387 S.W.2d 383 (Tex.Sup.1965).

We have examined the cases cited by Garcia to support his proposition that reversible jury misconduct occurred. Each case cited is clearly distinguishable in that jury misconduct was indisputably established in each, and there either was no admonition not to consider the matter or the admonition given was not heeded. Garcia’s first assignment is overruled.

The second assignment of oppugned realignment of the parties, in legal actuality, embraces three propositions, contrary to the provisions of Rule 418.1 Home Indemnity raises no objection that the point is multifarious, and responds in three counterpoints, and the assignment will be considered. Garcia complains that over his objection the trial court realigned the parties, thus preventing Garcia from presenting to the jury the real plaintiff and defendant and allowing unqualified medical testimony in evidence based upon an improper predicate.

Home Indemnity became the procedural plaintiff by filing its appeal from the award of the Industrial Accident Board, although Garcia was the actual claimant. No formal motion for realignment was filed. Prior to evidence being presented, Garcia’s counsel agreed with opposing counsel “that there would be no written request or formal motion necessary in realigning the parties, conditioned on the fact that this particular evidence (testimony by Dr. Gordon Mayes, Garcia’s treating doctor, regarding Garcia’s emotional condition) would not come in.”

The trial commenced, the pleadings were presented, and Garcia proceeded first to adduce his proof of entitlement to compensation, and Home Indemnity then responded with its defensive matters. As the final evidence before the jury, Home Indemnity proposed the deposition testimony of Dr. Mayes, including that portion concerning Garcia’s emotional condition. When it became apparent that the court would admit the testimony, Garcia objected. The objection was overruled, and Garcia moved to withdraw his conditional agreement to realign the parties and to offer evidence of the real plaintiff and defendant. This motion was denied, the court stating that no formal realignment of the parties would be entered and that the pleadings would remain as cast.

Thereafter, over objection to the testimony regarding Garcia’s emotional condition, Dr. Mayes’ deposition was read to the jury. Dr. Mayes first saw Garcia, by referral from Garcia’s doctor, on April 2, 1970, after Garcia’s injury on March 17, 1970, and following his compensation claim filing on or about March 24, 1970. In response to Home Indemnity’s counsel’s questions, Dr. Mayes stated that Garcia had continuing complaints of pain for which he found no objective symptoms, and that, in his opinion, emotional factors, one of which was Garcia’s pending compensation claim, “(p)layed a part,” but he did not know how much, in the continuing complaints of pain. Under questioning by Garcia’s counsel, the following is recorded:

“Q. You are not trying to say that he is emotional over this thing because of a claim, Doctor? It’s just that you found him that way, and you don’t know the cause ?
“A. Well, he has always been this way since the first time I saw him, yes.”

[538]*538On redirect examination, Dr. Mayes gave his opinion that in patients, who have a problem of emotional overlay and have claims pending, the pain is remarkably relieved by the settlement of the claim.

It is from these facts that Garcia concludes that reversible error exists.

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482 S.W.2d 937 (Court of Appeals of Texas, 1972)

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Bluebook (online)
474 S.W.2d 535, 1971 Tex. App. LEXIS 3011, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/garcia-v-home-indemnity-company-texapp-1971.