NELLY BUITRAGO AND GUSTAVO ZAPATA, APPELLANTS,
v.
BRIDGET FEASTER, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Buitrago and Zapata appeal a trial court's grant of a new trial on future noneconomic damages to injured plaintiff Feaster. The appellate court reverses the new trial order, holding that the trial court erred by applying an incorrect legal standard—that a permanent injury finding automatically entitles a plaintiff to future noneconomic damages as a matter of law—which the Florida Supreme Court had expressly rejected.
The trial court abused its discretion by granting the new trial motion based on the erroneous legal principle that a verdict finding permanent injury automatically entitles a plaintiff to future noneconomic damages as a matter of law. The correct standard is whether the verdict was against the manifest weight of the evidence, not whether a permanent injury finding was made.
[1] A trial court abuses its discretion when it grants a new trial based on an erroneous view of the law.
[2] A jury's finding of a permanent injury does not automatically entitle a plaintiff to recover future noneconomic damages as a matter of law.
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“a verdict is not inadequate as a matter of law when the jury finds a plaintiff has suffered a permanent injury but does not award future intangible damages”
Establishes the correct legal standard rejected by the trial court, citing the Florida Supreme Court's holding in Allstate Insurance Co. v. Manasse
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceFeaster was injured in a four-car collision caused by Zapata, who was driving Buitrago's truck. Following trial, the jury found Buitrago and Zapata li…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Permanent Injury cases and more on FLexlaw
Nelly Buitrago and Gustavo Zapata appeal from the trial court’s Order on Motions for Additur, Remittitur, and for New Trial, in which the court granted Bridget Feaster’s motion for a new trial on future noneconomic damages and denied Appellants’ motions for new trial on all issues. We affirm the denial of Appellants’ motions without further discussion. However, we must reverse the portion- of the court’s order that granted Feaster’s motion for new trial because the court’s decision was based on an erroneous view of the law and therefore constitutes an abuse of discretion.
Feaster was injured in a four-car collision caused by Zapata, who was driving Buitrago’s truck. Following a lengthy trial, the jury ultimately found Buitrago and Zapata liable to Feaster and awarded Feaster $55,819.34 for past medical expenses, $450,000 in future medical damages, $442.40 for lost wages, $25,000 for past noneconomic damages, and nothing for future noneconomic damages. Feaster moved for a new trial, claiming that the evidence and verdict established that she was legally entitled to future noneconomic damages. In arguing her motion, Feaster relied on Allstate Insurance Co. v. Ma-nasse, 681 So.2d 779 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996), for the proposition that the jury’s finding of a permanent injury automatically entitled her to recover future noneconomic damages as a matter of law. After hearing the parties’ arguments on the motion, the court apparently agreed and granted *320Feaster a new trial on the issue of future noneconomic damages.
Because it was the sole argument raised at the hearing and the court granted Feaster’s motion without making any specific findings,1 we are compelled to conclude that the court based its ruling on the argument that the jury must award future noneconomic damages as a matter of law when it finds that the plaintiff suffers a permanent injury. However, this view of the law was expressly rejected by the Florida Supreme Court when it held in Allstate Insurance Co. v. Manasse, 707 So.2d 1110 (Fla.1998), that a verdict is not inadequate as a matter of law when the jury finds a plaintiff has suffered a permanent injury but does not award future intangible damages.
The correct standard to apply in considering a motion for new trial based on an allegedly inadequate award of non-economic damages is whether the verdict was against the manifest weight of the evidence. See Cloud v. Fallís, 110 So.2d 669, 673 (Fla.1959). However, Feaster failed to argue this standard to the trial court, and the record makes it clear that the trial court did not consider the weight of the evidence in granting Feaster a new trial on noneconomic damages. The trial court then seemingly based its decision on an erroneous view of the law, and thus committed an abuse of discretion when it granted Feaster a new trial. See Tri-Pak Machinery, Inc. v. Hartshorn, 644 So.2d 118 (Fla. 2d DCA 1994). When, as here, “the appellate court cannot determine whether the trial court would have granted a new trial but for the error of law, ... then the proper remedy is to remand the case to the trial court for reconsideration in light of the correct legal principles.” Van v. Schmidt, 122 So.3d 243, 260 (Fla. 2013). Accordingly, we must reverse the order granting Feaster a new trial on non-economic damages.
Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
KELLY, J., and PLEUS, ROBERT J., JR., ASSOCIATE SENIOR JUDGE, Concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Meyers v. Bonneva Shontz, 251 So. 3d 992 (Fla. 2d DCA 2018)
-
Finkel v. Yarielsi Batista and Rodney Sanchez, 202 So. 3d 913 (Fla. 3d DCA 2016)…of the jury’s verdict. . An order granting a hew trial is generally reviewed for an abuse of discretion. See Van v. Schmidt, 122 So. 3d 243, 252-53 (Fla.2013). An erroneous view of the law can constitute an abuse of discretion. Buitrago v. Feaster, 157 So. 3d 318, 320 (Fla. 2d DCA 2014). Moreover, appellate courts apply a de novo standard of review to a trial court’s legal conclusions in an order granting a new trial. See Van, 122 So. 3d at 246 ("[A]n appellate court properly applies a de novo standard of re…
-
Anne Charlotte Sigrid Kratz v. Abdelmajid Daou (Fla. 3d DCA 2019)…eal followed. Analysis An order granting a new trial is generally reviewed for an abuse of discretion. See Van v. Schmidt, 122 So. 3d 243, 252-53 (Fla. 2013). An erroneous view of the law can constitute an abuse of discretion. Buitrago v. Feaster, 157 So. 3d 318, 320 (Fla. 2d DCA 2014). Moreover, appellate courts apply a de novo standard of review to a trial court’s legal conclusions in an order granting a new trial. See Van, 122 So. 3d at 246 . . . . Finkel v. Batista, 202 So. 3d 913, 915 n.1 (Fla. 3d…
Previewing 3 of 4 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Cloud v. Fallis, 110 So. 2d 669 (Fla. 1959)
- The Wackenhut Corp. v. Canty, 359 So. 2d 430 (Fla. 1978)
- Allstate Ins. Co. v. Myrda Manasse, 707 So. 2d 1110 (Fla. 1998)
- Allstate Ins. Co. v. Myrda Manasse, 681 So. 2d 779 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996)
- Tri-Pak Mach., Inc. v. Hartshorn, 644 So. 2d 118 (Fla. 2d DCA 1994)
- VAN v. Schmidt, 122 So. 3d 243 (Fla. 2013)
- Martin Cnty. Conservation Alliance v. Martin Cnty., 122 So. 3d 243 (Fla. 2013)