United States Fidelity & Guaranty Co. v. Royer Garden Center & Greenhouse, Inc.

598 A.2d 583, 143 Pa. Commw. 31, 1991 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 561
CourtCommonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 17, 1991
Docket2001 thru 2004 C.D. 1990, 2067 C.D. 1990, 2068 C.D. 1990, 2096 C.D. 1990, 2120 C.D. 1990, 2121 thru 2123 C.D. 1990, and 2152 C.D. 1990
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 598 A.2d 583 (United States Fidelity & Guaranty Co. v. Royer Garden Center & Greenhouse, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States Fidelity & Guaranty Co. v. Royer Garden Center & Greenhouse, Inc., 598 A.2d 583, 143 Pa. Commw. 31, 1991 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 561 (Pa. Ct. App. 1991).

Opinion

COLINS, Judge.

Susquehanna Township (Township), Kohler Signal Company (Kohler), Judy L. Bortz (Bortz), and collective appellants Julia Mercurio, Administratrix of the Estate of Mariano Mercurio (Mercurio), Lloyd L. and Wienona M. Glazer (Glazer) and United States Fidelity & Guaranty Company (USF & G), appeal from an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Dauphin County (trial court), which denied their post-trial motions for molding a jury’s damages verdict and the trial court’s calculation of delay damages.

The above-captioned consolidated matters on appeal arose from the following factual scenario. On May 15, 1987, at the intersection of Progress Avenue and Nationwide Drive in Susquehanna Township, Bortz, while in the course of her employment with Royer’s Garden Center & Greenhouse, Inc. (Royer), was operating Royer’s van and proceeding in a southbound direction when the van collided with a westbound vehicle operated by Mariano “Manny” Mercurio (decedent). These two vehicles collided with a third vehicle operated by Matthew Belicic (Belicic). As a result of the accident, Bortz sustained injuries, decedent was pronounced dead at the scene, and one of decedent’s employees, Glazer, was injured. Decedent’s truck, insured by USF & G, was totalled.

*38 Bortz and Glazer maintained that the accident was caused by the traffic signal’s displaying conflicting green lights simultaneously. The Township owned the traffic signal, for which Kohler provided maintenance and repair service. Testimony elicited during trial indicated that the light control system contained a technical device called a “conflict monitor,” manufactured by Winkomatic Signal Company, a/k/a Multisonics Corporation (Winkomatic). The conflict monitor was intended to detect conflicting green lights and put the traffic signal into a flashing mode once detected.

Procedurally, the above-captioned cases were consolidated for trial with the liability and damage claims bifurcated and decided by two respective juries. On June 22, 1989, the jury reached its verdict as to liability, finding the Township 40% negligent, Kohler 40% negligent, Bortz 20% negligent, and Winkomatic released of any liability.

At the conclusion of the damages trial for Bortz and Mercurio, on September 5, 1989, the jury awarded Bortz $31,733.67 and Mercurio $328,265.00, with an additional award in the amount of $5,351.83, made on August 28,1989, for property damages to decedent’s vehicle. At the conclusion of the damages trial involving Glazer as plaintiff, the jury, on November 2, 1989, awarded Glazer $14,000.00.

The Township, Kohler, Bortz and, collectively, Mercurio, Glazer and USF & G, filed post-trial motions to mold the jury’s damages verdict and the trial court’s calculation of delay damages. After hearing oral argument on the motions on February 20,1990, the trial court, on September 13, 1990, issued an order denying all post-trial motions filed and providing as follows: (1) judgment in favor of Bortz against the Township in the amount of $9,053.47 and against Kohler in the amount of $12,693.47; (2) judgment in favor of Mercurio against the Township in the amount of $138,720.72 and against Kohler in the amount of $149,626.72; (3) judgment in favor of Glazer against the Township in the amount of $3,600.00 and against Kohler in the amount of $5,600.00; and (4) judgment in favor of USF & G against the Township in the amount of $2,499.28 and against Kohler in the *39 amount of $2,499.28. It is from this order that the parties appeal.

The primary issues for our determination are: (1) whether substantial evidence in the record supports the trial court’s denial of the Township’s post-trial motions for a judgment notwithstanding the verdict (n.o.v.) on the basis that governmental immunity exempts municipalities from joint and several liability; (2) whether substantial evidence in the record supports the trial court’s evidentiary rulings (when considered in entirety) as to all parties or whether such rulings constituted an abuse of discretion that would warrant granting a new trial; and (3) whether substantial evidence in the record supports the trial court’s molding of the verdicts, including calculation of delay damages, for all parties and the resultant monetary awards.

DENIAL OF MOTION FOR JUDGMENT N.O.Y.

With respect to the first issue, the Township argues that the trial court should have entered a judgment n.o.v. in its favor because: (a) testimony elicited during the trial established that Kohler, an independent contractor, had unplugged the conflict monitor at the intersection one week before the subject accident and, pursuant to governmental immunity under what is commonly known as the Political Subdivision Tort Claims Act (Act), 1 the Township cannot be held liable either for the negligent action or the negligent supervision of Kohler; (b) no evidence in the record indicates the Township had prior notice, actual or constructive, of conflicting green lights at the intersection; and (c) under the rationale of Crowell v. City of Philadelphia, 131 Pa.Commonwealth Ct. 418, 570 A.2d 626, petition for allowance of appeal granted, in part, 525 Pa. 550, 582 A.2d 1311 and 525 Pa. 551, 582 A.2d 1311 (1990), municipalities are exempt from the application of joint and several liability and, because the jury found the Township only 40% liable for the accident, a judgment n.o.v. in the Township’s favor *40 is warranted. The Township further argues that it is not jointly and severally liable for those damages subject to immunity under the Act and that, just as plaintiffs are barred from recovering damages from the Township, so are co-defendants similarly barred from such recovery in a later contribution action.

Kohler counters the Township’s argument on this issue by averring that substantial evidence was adduced at trial from which a jury could properly find that ownership, maintenance, control, and proper functioning of the traffic signal were the ultimate responsibilities of the Township, not Kohler, and that the Township cannot now claim to have been a “mere facilitator” of the accident and resultant personal injuries sustained by the parties. Kohler further argues that the recent case of Buschman v. Druck, 139 Pa.Commonwealth Ct. 182, 590 A.2d 53 (1991), reversed this Court’s suggestion in Crowell that joint tort-feasor liability was no longer available against a governmental unit.

Bortz argues that the Township is not entitled to a judgment n.o.v. or a new trial, because the jury found the Township liable on the basis of its own negligence in allowing the continued existence of a known, hazardous intersectional condition. Additionally, Bortz argues that neither in Buschman

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Bluebook (online)
598 A.2d 583, 143 Pa. Commw. 31, 1991 Pa. Commw. LEXIS 561, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-fidelity-guaranty-co-v-royer-garden-center-greenhouse-pacommwct-1991.