Peters v. Warren

828 So. 2d 67, 2002 La.App. 4 Cir. 0592, 2002 La. App. LEXIS 2772
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 11, 2002
DocketNo. 2002-CA-0592
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 828 So. 2d 67 (Peters v. Warren) 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
Peters v. Warren, 828 So. 2d 67, 2002 La.App. 4 Cir. 0592, 2002 La. App. LEXIS 2772 (La. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

|! JONES, Judge.

The Defendant/Appellant, Patterson Insurance Company (hereinafter “Patterson”), appeals the judgment of the First City Court casting it in judgment for a total of $13,110 in favor of the Plaintiff/Ap-pellee, Elem Peters. We reverse.

[68]*68This appeal filed by Patterson arises out of a June 11,1999 automobile accident that occurred on Chef Menteur Highway in Orleans Parish. On the day in question, Mr. Peters was traveling eastbound on Chef Menteur Highway behind a vehicle being driven by Charles Cloud, Jr., when Mr. Cloud stopped his vehicle in the right lane of traffic to pick up a passenger. Mr. Peters was able to bring his car to a stop behind Mr. Cloud while the passenger was entering his vehicle. Immediately thereafter, the vehicle driven by Mr. Peters was struck in the rear by an unknown vehicle and propelled into Mr. Cloud’s vehicle. The operator of the striking vehicle fled the scene of the accident. Mr. Peters suffered injuries to his neck and back as a result of the accident.

Mr. Peters filed suit against Mr. Cloud and his insurer, Allstate Insurance Company (hereinafter “Allstate”). He also named Linda Warren and her alleged insurer, Patterson, as defendants. It is the contention of Mr. Peters contention that Ms. Warren was the driver of the vehicle that fled causing his vehicle to collide | ;.with the vehicle driven by Mr. Cloud. Mr. Peters alleged in his original petition that a witness at the scene of the accident had obtained the license number from Ms. Warren’s vehicle.

In its Answer, Patterson denied all of the allegations of Mr. Peters regarding Ms. Warren, except to admit that it had issued an automobile liability insurance policy covering Ms. Warren for liability up to the policy limits of Ten Thousand dollars ($10,000) per person, and Twenty Thousand dollars ($20,000) per accident for personal injuries suffered as the result of the fault of Ms. Warren. Our review of the record reveals that Ms. Warren was not served with a copy of the petition, and no Answer was filed on her behalf.

This matter came for a bench trial on December 11, 2001. Prior to the propounding of testimony, Patterson admitted that “[a]t the time of the accident, they had a policy issued to Warren” with the liability limits listed above.

At trial, Mr. Cloud and Mr. Peters were the only two witnesses called to testify. At the close of Mr. Peters’ case in chief, Mr. Cloud and Allstate moved for an involuntary dismissal arguing that Mr. Peters had not met his burden of proving that Mr. Cloud was negligent and had caused the accident. The First City Court granted the involuntary dismissal on behalf of Mr. Cloud and Allstate. Likewise, Patterson moved for an involuntary dismissal, arguing that no evidence had been presented to show that a vehicle owned and/or operated by Ms. Warren was the third vehicle involved in the accident. The First City Court denied the motion filed by Patterson and took the matter under advisement.

On December 28, 2001, the First City Court made in relevant part the following finding:

|3“... Accordingly, the court renders judgment in favor of Elem Peter [sic] in the amount of Eight Thousand Dollars ($8,000.00) in general damages, Three Thousand Nine Hundred Eighty Five Dollars ($3,985.00) in special damages, and One Thousand One Hundred Twenty Five ($1,125.00) in lost wages, along with legal interest from the date of judicial demand and all costs of these proceedings.”

It is from this judgment that Patterson now appeals.

At the outset, we find that the judgment of the First City Court fails to cast anyone in judgment. Nevertheless, it is abundantly clear that the district court intended to cast Patterson in judgment based on its finding of fault by Patterson’s insured, [69]*69Ms. Warren. The First City Court further noted in its judgment that:

The Court, after hearing the law, evidence, and argument of counsel, dismisses this claim with prejudice against the defendants, Charles Cloud, Jr. and Allstate Insurance Company, and finds that Patterson Insurance Company’s insured caused the plaintiff to suffer damages, when she failed to maintain a proper lookout of the plaintiffs vehicle and rear-ended the plaintiff, causing him damages.

In the interest of judicial economy and equity, we will consider the judgment of the First City Court as having cast Patterson in judgment. We would further amend the judgment accordingly in agreement with Reaux v. The City of New Orleans, 2001-1585 (La.App. 4 Cir. 3/20/02), 815 So.2d 191, however, since this Court reverses the finding of the First City Court, there is no need to amend and then reverse the judgement.

In Stobart v. State through Dept, of Transp. and Development, 617 So.2d 880 (La.1993), our Supreme Court set out the appellate standard of review in examining the findings of the district court, as follows:

A court of appeal may not set aside a trial court’s or a jury’s finding of fact in the absence of “manifest error” or unless it is “clearly wrong.” Rosell v. ESCO, 549 So.2d 840 (La.1989). This Court has announced a two-part test for the reversal of a factfinder’s determinations:

1) The appellate court must find from the record that a reasonable factual basis does not exist for the finding of the trial court, and
2) the appellate court must further determine that the record establishes that the finding is clearly wrong (manifestly erroneous). See Mart v. Hill, 505 So.2d 1120, 1127 (La.1987).
This test dictates that a reviewing court must do more than simply review the record for some evidence which supports or controverts the trial court’s finding. Id. The reviewing court must review the record in its entirety to determine whether the trial court’s finding was clearly wrong or manifestly erroneous.
Nevertheless, the issue to be resolved by a reviewing court is not whether the trier of fact was right or wrong, but whether the factfinder’s conclusion was a reasonable one. (Citations omitted).
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Nonetheless, this Court has emphasized that “the reviewing court must always keep in mind that ‘if the trial court or jury’s findings are reasonable in light of the record reviewed in its entirety, the court of appeal may not reverse, even if convinced that had it been sitting as the trier of fact, it would have weighed the evidence differently.’ ” (Citations omitted).

Stobart, 617 So.2d at 882-883.

Patterson, in its sole assignment of error, argues that the First City Court was manifestly erroneous in its finding that Mr. Peters proved by a preponderance of the evidence that the motor vehicle accident at issue was caused by the fault of its insured, Ms. Warren.’

We begin our review by examining the trial transcript. Mr. Cloud was the first witness called by Mr. Peters. Mr. Cloud testified that he stopped his vehicle near the intersection of Chef Menteur Highway and Downman Road to pick up a neighbor. He testified that he stopped his vehicle for approximately fifteen or |stwenty seconds and that the accident occurred immediately after his passenger had closed the door upon entering his vehicle. He testified [70]*70that the vehicle behind jammed into him after a third vehicle hit it from behind.

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Bluebook (online)
828 So. 2d 67, 2002 La.App. 4 Cir. 0592, 2002 La. App. LEXIS 2772, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/peters-v-warren-lactapp-2002.