Travelers Insurance Company v. Walston

436 S.W.2d 582, 1969 Tex. App. LEXIS 2165
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 9, 1969
Docket405
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 436 S.W.2d 582 (Travelers Insurance Company v. Walston) 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
Travelers Insurance Company v. Walston, 436 S.W.2d 582, 1969 Tex. App. LEXIS 2165 (Tex. Ct. App. 1969).

Opinion

DUNAGAN, Chief Justice.

This is a workmen’s compensation suit. This suit was brought by Mrs. Margie Lee Walston in her own right and as next friend for her minor children to recover compensation benefits for the death of her husband, Henry G. Walston, who died from a coronary occlusion allegedly precipitated or caused by strain or exertion claimed to have been incurred on June 9, 1965, during the course and scope of his employment with Knox Glass Company, Inc.

The case was tried to a jury which returned a verdict wherein it generally found that the insured sustained a compensable, accidental injury on the job, which was a producing cause of his death. A judgment for full death benefits as provided by Article 8306, Sec. 8, Vernon’s Ann.Tex.Civ.St, was entered and apportioned accordingly among the various statutory beneficiaries. This appeal has been duly and timely perfected from that judgment.

This appeal is before us on four points of error.

Appellant, in its first point of error, complains of the court overruling its amended motion for new trial for the reason that appellees’ counsel in argument before the jury continuously informed the jury of the effect of its answers to the issues submitted by arguing repeatedly that Mrs. Walston was suing to collect $35.00 per week for 360 weeks. No objection was made to the argument at the time. It was raised for the first time on the motion for new trial. Appellant urges that the argument by appellees’ counsel to the jury to the effect that the suit was for 360 weeks of benefits at $35.00 per week was improper, prejudicial and incurable. We do not think the argument complained of under this point is of the “incurable type.” This seems to have been made clear by the San Antonio Court of Civil Appeals in St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Company v. Escalera, 385 S.W.2d 477, 480 (1964, writ ref. n. r. e.), in which it was stated:

“* * * The first time such argument was made the trial judge sustained appellant’s objection, and the second time the trial court not only sustained appellant’s objection to the remarks but instructed the jury not to consider them. We are unable to say from the entire record that these remarks and arguments to the jury were of such harmful nature as to require a reversal of the judgment, especially in view of the fact that the trial judge instructed the jury not to consider those remarks. (Citing cases).” See also Texas Employers’ Insurance Association v. Rigsby, 273 S.W.2d 681 (Tex.Civ.App., Beaumont, 1954, n. w. h.).

The following portion of Plaintiffs’-Appellees’ Original Petition:

“WHEREFORE, PREMISES CONSIDERED, your Plaintiffs pray that the Defendant be cited in terms of the law to appear and answer herein, and that upon final trial and hearing of this cause they have judgment against the Defendant for Workmen’s Compensation benefits for death, in a lump sum, being compensation at the rate of Thirty-Five Dollars ($35) per week for a period of three hundred sixty (360) weeks, as allowed by law; * * *”

by the judgment in this case, was shown to have been read to the jury. Therefore, from the record before us, it appears that the complained of argument did not inform the jury of anything they did not already know. It is now well established that to inform the jury of that which it already knows does not prejudice the right of a litigant. Finck Cigar Co. v. Campbell, 134 Tex. 250, 133 S.W.2d 759 (1939); Texas Employers’ Insurance Association v. Logsdon, 278 S.W.2d 893, 899 (Tex.Civ.App., Amarillo, 1955, writ ref., n. r. e.).

*585 In support of this point, the appellant relies upon the case of Ex parte Fisher, 146 Tex. 328, 206 S.W.2d 1000, by the Supreme Court. A similar contention was made in St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company v. Foster, 375 S.W.2d 355, 358 (Tex. Civ.App., El Paso, 1964, n. w. h.) and the court said:

“The Fisher case, referred to in the quotation above, is relied upon by appellant in the instant case. In the Fisher case the remarks complained of occurred in the opening argument to the jury by claimant’s attorney after the court’s charge had been submitted. The attorney began to explain to the jury certain legal distinctions and objection was made by opposing counsel and sustained by the court. Claimant’s counsel then persisted in stating his position in the presence of the jury and after repeated adverse rulings by the court, finally resulting in counsel being cited for contempt. The actual ruling arrived at in the Fisher case by the Supreme Court was that the argument and conduct of counsel was peculiarly within the control, direction and jurisdiction of the trial court. There can be no doubt but what such is the law, and we do not find such ruling to be in conflict with the disposition we make of the case before us. * * *”

In the case of Texas Employers’ Insurance Association v. Rigsby, supra, the appellant complained of the trial court’s action in permitting counsel for plaintiff, over its objection, to read to the jury that portion of plaintiff’s petition in which he alleged that he was entitled to recover 401 weeks of workmen’s compensation insurance at the rate of 60% of his average weekly wage, not to exceed $25.00 per week. At the beginning of the trial, before the voir dire examination of the jury, appellant’s counsel moved the court to instruct counsel not to inform the jury that he was seeking insurance at the rate of $25.00 per week for a period of 401 weeks, and that counsel be prevented from reading that portion of his petition to the jury. The stated reason for the motion was that it was not proper for the jury to know the amount of money or the rate of compensation plaintiff was seeking, since to do so would inform the jury of these facts or impart information to them with which they are not concerned, since the jury would then be informed of the legal effect of its findings. In disposing of this contention, the court said: “* * * In support of this point the appellant relies upon the case of Ex parte Fisher, 146 Tex. 328, 206 S.W.2d 1000 by the Supreme Court. We are unable to see any similarity between the instant case and that case. As we view the matter the portion of the pleadings complained of and read to the jury with the rest of the petition was a portion of the prayer which simply stated what the plaintiff was suing for. It was not improper to thus inform the jury, but if such an action could be regarded as improper, no harm resulted to the appellant so far as we can ascertain from this record. * * *” See also Texas Employers’ Insurance Association v. Rubush, 337 S.W.2d 501, 505 (Tex.Civ.App., Fort Worth, 1960, writ ref., n. r. e.).

Under its point of error No. 3, appellant also complains of the following argument of appellees’ counsel to the jury:

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Bluebook (online)
436 S.W.2d 582, 1969 Tex. App. LEXIS 2165, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/travelers-insurance-company-v-walston-texapp-1969.