Jack v. Eldorado Casino Shreveport Joint Venture

264 So. 3d 599
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJanuary 16, 2019
DocketNo. 52,454-CA
StatusPublished

This text of 264 So. 3d 599 (Jack v. Eldorado Casino Shreveport Joint Venture) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jack v. Eldorado Casino Shreveport Joint Venture, 264 So. 3d 599 (La. Ct. App. 2019).

Opinion

STEPHENS, J.

Defendants, Eldorado Casino Shreveport Joint Venture, L.L.C., Eldorado Shreveport # 1, L.L.C., and Eldorado Shreveport # 2, L.L.C. (collectively "Eldorado"), appeal the denial of a motion in limine and judgment in the First Judicial District Court, Parish of Caddo, State of Louisiana, awarding damages to plaintiff, Yasheka Jack ("Jack"). For the following reasons, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

This matter arises out of injuries sustained by Jack at the Eldorado Casino in Shreveport, Louisiana, and the subsequent suit for damages filed against Eldorado. Jack's injury occurred on November 9, 2013, when a beverage server employed by Eldorado, Denise Ramone, spilled hot coffee on Jack, which caused Jack to twist suddenly out of the chair on which she was seated and injure her back in the process. Jack filed a petition for damages against Eldorado on October 3, 2014. Eldorado answered and asserted several affirmative defenses, notably which Jack's injuries were proximately caused by a person or entity other than Eldorado.

Prior to trial, Eldorado filed a motion in limine seeking to exclude from evidence the portions of Jack's medical expenses that were written off, claiming Jack never actually incurred or had an obligation to pay the full amount of the expenses, and thus, the collateral source rule does not apply. The trial court denied Eldorado's motion, holding the collateral source rule does apply to write-offs negotiated by Jack's private insurance provider, to whom she had paid monthly premiums. Accordingly, Jack's medical records that were admitted into evidence during the trial were redacted to exclude the amount of the insurance payments and write-offs and, thus, reflected the full amount of medical expenses charged to Jack. Following the ruling on its motion, Eldorado failed to proffer into evidence any proof or information regarding the specific amounts of the write-offs.

*602Trial commenced on September 11, 2017, wherein 11 witnesses testified. Following the conclusion of testimony, Jack moved for a directed verdict on comparative fault regarding Eldorado's affirmative defense of negligence on the part of an unknown patron. The motion was denied.

On September 14, 2017, a unanimous 12-person jury found Ramone was negligent, her negligence was a proximate cause of Jack's injuries, and the unknown patron was not negligent. The jury assessed 100% of the fault to Ramone and made the following award to Jack:

Past medical expenses $237,124.79 Future medical expenses 577,698.00 Past lost wages 51,646.00 Future lost wages 317,460.00 Past physical pain and suffering 40,000.00 Future physical pain and suffering 60,000.00 Past mental pain and suffering 75,000.00 Future mental pain and suffering 50,000.00 Past loss of enjoyment of life 10,000.00 Future loss of enjoyment of life 10,000.00 Disability 0.00 Scarring 1,000.00

The trial court rendered judgment in the total amount of $1,429,928.70.1

Eldorado subsequently filed a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict, which was denied. In ruling on the motion, the trial court noted that with regard to the issues of both fault and future lost wages, the jury had simply made a credibility call which it would not disturb on the basis of its own opinion of the evidence. Furthermore, in denying the portion of Eldorado's motion that requested a reduction to the jury's award for past medical expenses in an amount equal to the write-offs, the trial court noted there was no evidence in the record regarding the specific amounts of the write-offs; therefore, even if it were inclined to reduce the award by those amounts, it would not "guestimate" what those written-off amounts would be.

Eldorado now appeals the judgment of the trial court and asserts three assignments of error pertaining to (1) the assessment of 100% fault to Ramone; (2) the award for future lost wages; and (3) the trial court's application of the collateral source rule to the insurer-negotiated write-offs.

DISCUSSION

Eldorado's first two assignments of error involve the jury's assessment of the credibility of witnesses. When findings are based on determinations regarding the *603credibility of witnesses, the manifest error standard demands great deference to the trial court's findings. Robinson v. Board of Supervisors for Univ. of La. Sys. , 2016-2145 (La. 6/29/17), 225 So.3d 424 ; Fuller v. Bissell , 51,759 (La. App. 2 Cir. 1/10/18), 245 So.3d 1169. Under manifest error review, the trial court's factual findings can be reversed only if the appellate court finds, based on the entire record, no reasonable factual basis for the factual finding and the factfinder is clearly wrong. Baker v. PHC-Minden L.P. , 2014-2243 (La. 5/5/15), 167 So.3d 528 ; Fuller , supra . Where documents or objective evidence so contradict the witness's story, or the story itself is so internally inconsistent or implausible on its face, that a reasonable factfinder would not credit the witness's story, then the court of appeal may find manifest error or plain wrongness even in a finding based on credibility. But where such factors are not present, and the factfinder's finding is based on its decision to credit the testimony of one of two or more witnesses, that finding can virtually never be manifestly erroneous or clearly wrong. Rosell v. ESCO , 549 So.2d 840 (La. 1989) ; Johnson v. Tucker , 51,723 (La. App. 2 Cir. 11/15/17), 243 So.3d 1237, writs denied , 2017-2075, 2017-2073 (La. 2/9/18), 236 So.3d 1262 and 1266.

Assessment of Fault

In its first assignment of error, Eldorado asserts the jury erred in assessing 100% of fault to Ramone, thereby refusing to accept as credible the uncontradicted testimony of Ramone regarding the cause of the accident. We disagree. A trial court's findings regarding percentages of fault are factual, and will not be disturbed on appeal unless clearly wrong. Purvis v. Grant Parish School Bd., 2013-1424 (La. 2/14/14), 144 So.3d 922, 926.

Overview of relevant testimony

Jack testified that on the night her injury occurred, she had met her two aunts, Mary Williams and Tolonia Bryant, at the Eldorado Casino. The three were sitting in chairs at the penny slot machines. Jack and Williams were sitting side by side with an empty chair between them, while Bryant was sitting across the aisle with her back to the machine, facing Jack and Williams.

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Related

Rosell v. Esco
549 So. 2d 840 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1989)
Purvis v. Grant Parish School Board
144 So. 3d 922 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 2014)
Chesney v. Entergy La., L.L.C.
236 So. 3d 1262 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 2018)
Johnson v. Tucker
243 So. 3d 1237 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2017)
Fuller v. Bissell
245 So. 3d 1169 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2018)
Murphy v. Savannah
246 So. 3d 785 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2018)
Shephard v. AIX Energy, Inc.
249 So. 3d 194 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2018)

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Bluebook (online)
264 So. 3d 599, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jack-v-eldorado-casino-shreveport-joint-venture-lactapp-2019.