Swinnea v. Eri Consulting Engineers, Inc.

481 S.W.3d 747, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 1339, 2016 WL 530016
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedFebruary 10, 2016
DocketNO. 12-14-00288-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 481 S.W.3d 747 (Swinnea v. Eri Consulting Engineers, Inc.) 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
Swinnea v. Eri Consulting Engineers, Inc., 481 S.W.3d 747, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 1339, 2016 WL 530016 (Tex. Ct. App. 2016).

Opinion

OPINION

JAMES T. WORTHEN, Chief Justice

J. Mark Swinnea breached his fiduciary duty to. ERI Consulting Engineers, Inc. and Larry Snodgrass. In this appeal of the trial.court’s post-remand judgment, he complains of the disgorgement, exemplary damage, and attorney’s fees awards rendered against him. We affirm.

Background

Snodgrass and Swinnea were equal owners of ERI, managing asbestos abatement projects for contractors, and partners in a limited partnership called Malmeba Company, Ltd. In the summer of 2001, without Snodgrass’s knowledge, Swinnea and another ERI employee formed a new company, Air Quality Associates, Inc. In August 2001, Snodgrass and ERI purchased Swinnea’s interest in ERI, although Swin-nea was to remain an ERI employee for six years, during which time he was not to compete with ERI. The 'following year, Swinnea’s wife started a new abatement contracting company, Brady Environmental, Inc. In 2004, Snodgrass and ERI sued Swinnea for statutory fraud in á real estate and stock transaction, common law fraud, breach of the noncompete -clause in the contract, and breach of fiduciary duty. After a bench trial, the trial' court determined that Snodgrass and ERI are entitled to recover combined forfeiture and actual damage awards of $1,020,700.00, an exemplary damage award of $1,000,000.00, and attorney’s fees.

Swinnea appealed that judgment to this court. In our August 30, 2007 judgment, we deleted the monetary awards to ERI and Snodgrass, and rendered judgment that ERI and. Snodgrass take nothing, but affirmed that Swinnea, Malmeba Company, Ltd., and Brady Environmental, Inc. take nothing on their claims against ERI and Snodgrass.1 Upon .review of our opinion and judgment, the supreme court affirmed our determination that.ERI and Snodgrass should take, nothing on their conspiracy claims, but reversed our judgment as to the monetary awards for the remaining claims, and remanded the case to us for further review.2

On remand to this court, we suggested a remittitur of a portion of the award for lost profits, determined that the statutory cap on exemplary damages does not apply in this case, and affirmed the. trial court’s award of. exemplary damages.3 Finally, as-.directed by the supreme court, we remanded the case to -the. trial court for review of the forfeiture award in light of the principles discussed in the supreme court’s opinion. Upon remand, in reviewing the forfeiture award, the trial court considered the evidence in the original record and allowed the parties to present additional evidence. The trial court determined that ERI and Snodgrass are entitled to recover from Swinnea actual damages in the amount of $178,601.05, disgorgement' in the amount of $720,700.00, exemplary damages in the amount of $1,000,000.00, attorney’s fees, pre- and post-judgment interest, and court costs. It further held that ERI and Snodgrass shall take nothing against Bra[752]*752dy. Environmental, Inc., and that Swinnea, Brady Environmental,' Inc., and Malmeba Company, Ltd. shall take nothing against ERI and Snodgrass. It is from this July 15, 2014 judgment that Swinnea now- appeals. ■

Limited Appeal

In his first issue, Swinnea asserts that Snodgrass should take nothing because he lacks standing and therefore proved no individually recoverable actual damages. In his fourth issué, he argues, in part, that we should vacate our pronouncement that the statutory - cap on punitive damages does not apply and render judgment that the statutory “cap-busting” exception does not apply in this case.

The “law of the case” doctrine is defined as that principle under which questions of law decided on appeal to a court of last resort will govern the case throughout its subsequent stages. Hudson v. Wakefield, 711 S.W.2d 628, 630 (Tex.1986). The doctrihe is intended to achieve uniformity of decision as well as judicial economy. Id. It is based on public policy and is aimed at putting an end to litigation. Id.

Swinnea raised the issue of Snod-grass’s standing in. the first appeal of this case. We ruled against him on the issue. See Swinnea, 236 S.W.3d at 833. Accordingly, that determination is law of the case. See Hudson, 711 S.W.2d at 630. Likewise, we will not revisit Swinnea’s issue regarding the statutory cap. See Swinnea, 364 S.W.3d at 424. We overrule Swinnea’s first issue and that part of issue four requesting us to reconsider application of the statutory cap.

Disgorgement

In his second issue, Swinnea asserts that this court should eliminate or revise the disgorgement award. He asserts that the consideration he gave up, his ERI stock, was worth as much as what he received in return and has been ordered to disgorge. Further, he argues, a “proper restitution-ary award” would require ERI and Snod-grass to restore the consideration they received. Consequently, the argument continues, the disgorgement award goes beyond restoring a windfall and is thus punitive, Swinnea further argues that because no actual damages were recovered in connection' with the buyout transaction, there is no legal básis for a punitive disgorgement. Additionally, he asserts that the disgorgement award cannot overlap or duplicate' another punitive damage award. Therefore, he argues, either the $720,700.00 disgorgement award or the one million dollar punitive damages award must be deleted. Finally, he claims the punitive- disgorgement award must be screened for excessiveness.

In his fourth issue, Swinnea argues, in part, that he should not be required to return $66,500.00 because it was not obtained by wrongdoing. He asserts that this money represents rentals earned on the fifty percent interest Swinnea acquired in the leased office space years before the buyout and thérefore is not disgorgeable.

Applicable Law

Disgqrgement is an equitable forfeiture of benefits wrongfully obtained. In re Longview Energy Co., 464 S.W.3d 353, 361 (Tex.2015) (orig. proceeding). Among other, situations, it. is-.applicable where a person who renders service to another in a relationship of trust breaches that trust. Id. Disgorgement is compensatory, but it is not damages. Id. The central purpose of forfeiture is to protect relationships of trust by discouraging agents’ disloyalty. Burrow v. Arce, 997 S.W.2d 229, 238 (Tex.1999). Where a fiduciary takes advantage of his' position of trust to induce a principal to enter into a [753]*753contract,- the fiduciary is not entitled to compensation. ERI Consulting- Eng’rs, Inc., 318 S.W.3d at 873-74. Thus, when a fiduciary fraudulently induced a -contract, this breach of fiduciary duty may give rise to equitable forfeiture of contractual consideration. Id. at 882. Forfeiture may be appropriate eyen if the party who was .fraudulently induced into the contract fails to suffer harm or when he can be fully compensated by damages. Id. at 874.

Equitable forfeiture is distinguishable from an award of actual damages incurred as a result of a breach of fiduciary -duty. Burrow, 997 -S.W.2d at 240.

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481 S.W.3d 747, 2016 Tex. App. LEXIS 1339, 2016 WL 530016, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/swinnea-v-eri-consulting-engineers-inc-texapp-2016.