Lewis v. Till

387 So. 2d 706
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedAugust 11, 1980
Docket7630
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 387 So. 2d 706 (Lewis v. Till) 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
Lewis v. Till, 387 So. 2d 706 (La. Ct. App. 1980).

Opinion

387 So.2d 706 (1980)

Bobby LEWIS et ux., Plaintiffs-Appellants,
v.
Leslie Michael TILL et al., Defendants-Appellees.

No. 7630.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

August 11, 1980.

Trimble, Randow, Smith & Wilson, Alonzo P. Wilson, Alexandria, for plaintiffs-appellants.

Bolen & Erwin, James A. Bolen, Jr., Gist, Methvin, Hughes & Munsterman, DeWitt T. Methvin, Jr., Alexandria, Thomas & Dunahoe, G. F. Thomas, Jr., Natchitoches, Gold, Little, Simon, Weems & Bruser, Eugene J. *707 Sues, W. T. Armitage, Jr., Alexandria, for defendants-appellees.

Before FORET, STOKER and LABORDE, JJ.

STOKER, Judge.

The plaintiffs brought this suit to recover damages for the death of their minor son. The child died from injuries received as the result of being backed over by a vehicle driven by the defendant, Leslie Michael Till, a minor at the time. Among the defendants in the lawsuit are Leslie Michael Till, his parents, Barney N. Eubanks and Barbara Jean Eubanks, Insured Lloyds (the alleged liability insurer of Leslie Michael Till), Ohio Casualty Insurance Company and State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (the alleged uninsured and underinsured motorist carriers). Also made a defendant in the lawsuit is Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, the homeowner's insurer of the plaintiffs, Bobby and Jennifer Lewis.

The plaintiffs' claim against their homeowner's insurance carrier is based on their alternative allegation that in the event plaintiff, Jennifer Bertram Lewis, is found to be negligent or contributorily negligent, then plaintiff, Bobby Lewis, is entitled to recover his damages from Fireman's Fund as the homeowner's insurer of Jennifer Bertram Lewis. In asserting this claim Mr. Lewis invokes the personal liability coverage allegedly afforded to Mrs. Lewis under their homeowner's policy.

Fireman's Fund Insurance Company filed a Motion for Summary Judgment contending that if Jennifer Bertram Lewis was negligent then recovery by Bobby Lewis would be barred.

HUSBAND'S CLAIM FOR GENERAL DAMAGES

On the Motion for Summary Judgment, the trial court held that Mr. Lewis' claim for general damages would be barred if his wife was negligent or contributorily negligent. The court reasoned that Mrs. Lewis' negligence, which precludes her from recovering for the wrongful death of her son or for his pain and suffering, is imputed to her husband so as to bar his recovery also.

The trial court's decision was based on a recent decision of this court in Carter v. Salter, 351 So.2d 312 (La.App. 3rd Cir., 1977). That case involved a very similar factual situation to the one before us. In Carter, the plaintiffs brought suit against their neighbors and their neighbors' homeowner's insurer to recover damages resulting from their neighbors' motorcycle falling and crushing their two-year old son. The child and his mother had been visiting their neighbors when the accident occurred. Apparently the motorcycle was not in a steady position, being held in place by the side kickstand rather than a center stand which raised the back wheel.

The homeowner and the child's mother were found to be negligent in failing to take precautions against the accident because the motorcycle had fallen between ten and thirty minutes before the fatal accident occurred, a fact of which the mother, Mrs. Carter, was aware. We held that the mother's negligence precluded her from recovering for the wrongful death of her son or for his pain and suffering. The mother's negligence was imputed to her husband which barred his recovery for the wrongful death of their son or for the survival action.

The principle underlying the Carter decision, that the negligence of the wife is imputed to the husband, has been well established in the jurisprudence of this state. The courts have relied on the fact that the damages recoverable by the husband in Louisiana are community property as a theoretical basis for imputing the negligence of the wife to the husband and thus preventing the wife from indirectly profiting by the enrichment of the community. Carter v. Salter, supra.

The negligence of the husband traditionally has not been imputed to the wife because the damages she recovers have been her separate property. Vitale v. Checker, 166 La. 527, 117 So. 579 (La.1928).

*708 We recognized the problem of imputed negligence in the Carter case when we said, speaking through then Judge Watson:

"The distinction drawn in Vitale, supra, between imputing the husband's negligence to the wife and the wife's to the husband, although tenuous and without practical justification, has remained the law in Louisiana."

EFFECT OF CIVIL CODE ARTICLE 2344 AS AMENDED

Appellant points out that Article 2344 of the Louisiana Civil Code (as amended by Act 709 of 1979) now provides that damages resulting from personal injury of both the husband and the wife are their separate property. Although this amendment did not go into effect until after the accident which led to this litigation, appellant argues persuasively that, because of the amendment, the theoretical basis for Carter is no longer valid. Unfortunately for plaintiff-appellant we are not in a position to consider in this case the validity of his argument. The Louisiana Legislature amended LSA-C.C. art. 2344 effective January 1, 1980, by means of Act 709 of 1979, to place men in the same position as women with respect to recovery of damages for personal injuries. This amendment made a substantive change in the law on this subject. Since the amendment dealt with a change in substantive law, it cannot be given retroactive effect. A substantive law is presumed to be prospective in effect, and it should not be applied retroactively unless the language used by the Legislature shows a clear intent that it should be given a retroactive effect. O'Banion v. Allstate Insurance Company, 347 So.2d 878 (La.App. 3rd Cir., 1977); Wilkinson v. Viccinelli, 359 So.2d 634 (La.App. 1st Cir., 1978), writ denied 360 So.2d 198 (La.1978) and Green v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, 352 So.2d 366 (La.App. 4th Cir., 1977), writ denied 354 So.2d 210 (La.1978).

As we have found no provision in the amending statute indicating it was intended by the Legislature to be given retroactive effect, we must apply the law governing before the amendment. Inasmuch as Carter v. Salter, supra, represents the proper interpretation of the prior law, we apply it to the facts of this case. Accordingly, the negligence of Mrs. Lewis is imputed to Mr. Lewis, as the plaintiff here, resulting in a bar to recovery by him.

SURVIVAL ACTIONS

The law as to the survival actions asserted in this case is the same as that applied to Mr. Lewis' claim for general damages. In Carter v. Salter, supra, we stated:

"Likewise, under the jurisprudence of this circuit, both Mrs. Carter and Mr. Carter are barred from recovering in their survival actions for Brent's pain and suffering by Mrs. Carter's negligence and its imputation to her husband. Moore v. Kinney, 315 So.2d 340 (La.App. 3 Cir. 1975)."

Therefore, Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, would not be liable in the survival actions based on any pain and suffering the Lewis' son experienced before he expired. The granting of the Motion for Summary Judgment as to such damages was also proper.

CONSTITUTIONAL QUESTIONS

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Related

Lewis v. Till
413 So. 2d 354 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1982)
Frito-Lay, Inc. v. Wapco Constructors, Inc.
520 F. Supp. 186 (M.D. Louisiana, 1981)
Martinez v. Reynolds
398 So. 2d 156 (Louisiana Court of Appeal, 1981)
Lewis v. Till
393 So. 2d 740 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1980)

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