Hamlin v. Kirby

2015 Ohio 4994
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedNovember 30, 2015
Docket15CA7
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2015 Ohio 4994 (Hamlin v. Kirby) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hamlin v. Kirby, 2015 Ohio 4994 (Ohio Ct. App. 2015).

Opinion

[Cite as Hamlin v. Kirby, 2015-Ohio-4994.]

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO FOURTH APPELLATE DISTRICT LAWRENCE COUNTY

Robert Hamlin, Jr., : Case No. 15CA7

Plaintiff-Appellee, :

v. : DECISION AND JUDGMENT ENTRY David Kirby, :

: RELEASED: 11/30/2015 Defendant-Appellant. :

APPEARANCES:

Warren N. Morford, Jr., Ironton, Ohio, for Appellant.

Donald R. Capper, Proctorville, Ohio, for Appellee.

Harsha, J. {¶1} David Kirby appeals from the denial of his motion for relief from judgment

under Civ.R. 60(B). Kirby claims that the trial court erred because the record shows that

Robert Hamlin, Jr. made several misrepresentations of fact at the damages hearing and

obtained a judgment by fraud or misrepresentation. Kirby argues that there were a

number of factual discrepancies between Hamlin’s testimony and his medical records

and that it was actually Hamlin’s father who suffered the injuries, not Hamlin. Kirby also

argues that Hamlin lied about whether he was employed at the time of the injury and

whether he had a prior back injury. As a result Kirby claims that he should have been

granted relief from judgment.

{¶2} However, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Kirby’s

motion. Kirby did not provide sufficient evidence to establish the operative facts of fraud, Lawrence App. No. 15CA7 2

which must be shown by clear and convincing evidence. The only evidence he

presented to support his fraud allegations were Hamlin’s own Emergency Medical

Service (EMS) report, which substantiated Hamlin’s damages claims, and an unsworn

investigative report that contained two levels of hearsay. Because Kirby failed to show

that he was entitled to relief from judgment under Civ. R. 60(B), we affirm the trial

court’s decision denying his motion.

I. FACTS

{¶3} Hamlin filed an action against Kirby for damages from injuries Hamlin

sustained when the porch of an apartment building Kirby owned collapsed. Kirby was

the owner-landlord and Hamlin was a guest of several of the tenants. Kirby failed to

answer the complaint and, approximately one year later, the trial court granted a default

judgment on liability against him. In June 2014 the trial court held the damages hearing,

which Kirby attended and admitted that he had received the complaint and had

contacted an attorney. Kirby claimed to have heard nothing more about the matter until

he received a notice on the damages hearing. He acknowledged that he received three

different notices concerning the damages hearing, but that he did not attempt to contact

an attorney until about three days before the hearing. Kirby asked for, but did not

receive, a continuance of the damages hearing.

{¶4} Hamlin testified that he was visiting his mother at the apartment building

Kirby owned and was sitting on a chair on the back porch when the porch floor

collapsed and he fell approximately six feet into the porch. Hamlin submitted

photographs of the collapsed floor and testified that he suffered back injuries as a result

of the fall. Hamlin testified that he incurred medical bills totaling $20,109.85, suffered Lawrence App. No. 15CA7 3

lost wages of $30,000, and requested $50,000 for pain and suffering. Kirby cross-

examined Hamlin, arguing that it was Hamlin’s father, not Hamlin who suffered the fall

and injuries. The trial court awarded Hamlin $20,109.85 in medical expenses, $25,000

in lost wages, and $45,000 for pain and suffering, for a total damage award of

$90,109.85.

{¶5} Seven months after the damage award, Kirby filed a motion for relief from

judgment under Civ.R. 60(B) on the ground that Hamlin made several

misrepresentations of fact at the damages hearing. Kirby argued that Hamlin obtained

a judgment based upon misrepresentation and fraud through false testimony. One of

the alleged misrepresentations concerned whether Hamlin was helped up out of the

porch hole by the EMS personnel or whether Hamlin’s family members helped him up.

Hamlin testified that he was helped out of the porch hole by the EMS, but Kirby argued

that an EMS report states that Hamlin was lying flat on the kitchen floor when the EMS

arrived. Therefore, Kirby argued that there was a discrepancy about how Hamlin got out

of the hole and the only logical conclusion was that Hamlin was not badly injured

because he was able to climb out of the hole and move to the kitchen floor without any

assistance.

{¶6} A second alleged misrepresentation concerned Hamlin’s employment

status at the time of the fall. Hamlin testified that when he fell on June 5, 2012, he was

employed by Thompson Towing, but was unable to return to work due to injuries from

the fall. Kirby claimed that he had hired a private investigator to contact Thompson

Towing three years later in January 2015. According to the investigative report the

owner confirmed that Hamlin had worked for Thompson Towing as a tow truck driver. Lawrence App. No. 15CA7 4

Hamlin’s personnel file indicated he started work on May 4, 2012, approximately four

weeks before the accident. No termination date was given in the file, however the

employer stated that Hamlin was not terminated and had not officially resigned, but had

“just stopped coming to work.” The owner said Hamlin worked “for a couple of weeks.”

Kirby argued a discrepancy existed about Hamlin’s employment status at the time of the

fall. Hamlin’s testimony was that he had been working for Thompson Towing in June

2012, which would have been for at least four weeks, while the owner’s recollection

three years later was that Hamlin had worked there from May 2012 for “a couple of

weeks.” Kirby argues that a couple of weeks means two weeks and thus Hamlin was

not employed by Thompson Towing and had misrepresented his employment status to

the court.

{¶7} Kirby also argued that Hamlin made no attempt to mitigate his damages;

that it was actually Hamlin’s father who fell into porch instead of Hamlin; and that Kirby

saw Hamlin wearing a back brace before the fall and therefore was lying about whether

he had any prior back injury.

{¶8} Hamlin opposed the motion on the ground that it was untimely. Hamlin

argued the Kirby admitted he received a copy of the complaint, was aware as early as

March 2014 that a judgment on liability was issued, and knew a judgment awarding

damages was rendered in June 2014. Hamlin argued that nonetheless, Kirby essentially

ignored the judicial process until Hamlin took steps to attach a lien on Kirby’s real

property in November 2014. Only then did Kirby retain counsel who requested a

hearing in December 2014 and made a motion under Civ.R. 60(B) in January 2015, Lawrence App. No. 15CA7 5

seven months after the judgment was rendered. Hamlin cited to State Farm Mut. Auto.

Ins. Co. v. Garreffa, 4th Dist. Washington App. No. 04CA3, 2004-Ohio-3394 in support.

{¶9} In response Kirby filed a supplemental memorandum in which he claimed

that during the time Hamlin stated he was unable to work, he committed a number of

criminal offenses.

{¶10} The trial court held a hearing on Kirby’s motion and denied it on the

grounds that Kirby failed to present an affidavit or other admissible evidence to support

the misrepresentation and fraud allegations presented by counsel. The trial court also

found that Kirby failed to show that the judgment was entered by “mistake,

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