Bearden v. Bearden , 231 Ga. App. 182 ( 1998 )

Johnson, Judge.

Paula Bearden was injured in an automobile accident while riding as a passenger in a car driven by her husband, David Bearden. She sued her husband, claiming her injuries were caused by his negligent operation of the car. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Mr. Bearden on the basis of the interspousal tort immunity doctrine. On appeal, Ms. Bearden claims the trial court erred in applying the doctrine because she alleges that the facts show she and her husband had not lived together for a long period of time and that no marital relationship existed between them. We agree that David Bearden was not entitled to be shielded by the doctrine of interspousal tort immunity as a matter of law, and reverse the trial court’s decision.

On motion for summary judgment the movant has the initial burden of showing that no genuine issue of material fact remains and that he is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. “Once the movant has made a prima facie showing that [he] is entitled to judgment as a matter of law, the burden shifts to the respondent to come forward with rebuttal evidence. [Cit.]” Ellis v. Curtis-Toledo, Inc., 204 Ga. App. 704, 705 (2) (420 SE2d 756) (1992). But that rebuttal evidence is treated with great deference, and the court is required to construe all evidence and all reasonable deductions in favor of the' respondent, and to give the respondent the benefit of every doubt and every reasonable inference. Lau’s Corp. v. Haskins, 261 Ga. 491 (405 SE2d 474) (1991).

In support of his motion for summary judgment, Mr. Bearden produced an affidavit stating that the parties married in November 1987 and separated in early 1989. He stated, however, that during the separation, he and his wife “were together frequently[;] . . . spent the night together at motels and other placest,]. . . [and that,] [o]n the day of the accident, to wit, July 11, 1995, my wife and I had been together since the previous day.” He stated they were returning from a swimming trip when the accident occurred.

In opposition to summary judgment, Ms. Bearden stated by affidavit that the parties have been separated since 1989 “because we could not get along with each other.” She stated that during the separation, Mr. Bearden has lived with other women, and she has considered herself “unofficially divorced” from him with “no plan or hope for us getting back together.” Ms. Bearden further stated in her affidavit that “[tjhere has not been any ‘harmony’ to preserve in our marriage since we separated in 1989 . . . [and that] I am not colluding or scheming with the Defendant in any way in prosecuting this claim.” Ms. Bearden’s mother gave an affidavit stating that the parties have not lived together since 1989, and that she has not “seen any interaction between them that would give [her] any hope for them getting back together in the future.” There was also evidence that on the same day Ms. Bearden commenced the present action, she also filed an action seeking a divorce from Mr. Bearden.

This case is indistinguishable from Harris v. Harris, 252 Ga. 387, 388 (2) (313 SE2d 88) (1984), where the Supreme Court of Georgia reiterated the traditional policy reasons for applying the inter-spousal tort immunity doctrine: (1) the belief that abrogation of interspousal tort immunity would foster marital disharmony and disunity and (2) the justifiable fear of collusive or friendly lawsuits between spouses. In Harris, the facts showed that the husband and wife had been separated for ten years at the time of the accident, and during that time the husband cohabited with another woman. Although there was evidence of “sporadic reconciliation attempts,” there was no evidence of a substantial ongoing relationship. Id. Thus, the Supreme Court concluded that there was no “marital harmony” to be protected by application of the interspousal immunity rule. Id. There was also no evidence of collusion or intent to defraud an insurance company. Id.

We acknowledge, as the dissent points out, that Ms. Bearden’s statement in her affidavit that she is “not colluding or scheming with the Defendant in any way in prosecuting this claim” is conclusory and should not be considered. “[C]onclusory allegations by way of an affidavit, unsupported by specific allegations of fact, will not be sufficient to avoid summary judgment.” Swanson v. Lockheed Aircraft Corp., 181 Ga. App. 876, 879 (354 SE2d 204) (1987). Nonetheless, the affidavits of Ms. Bearden and her mother state that the parties had not lived together for some six years prior to the accident and neither had any hope that the Beardens would reconcile. In addition, there is no evidence in the record of collusion or intent to defraud an insurance company. Treating that evidence with the deference required on summary judgment, it is sufficient to create a genuine issue regarding the status of the relationship.

The doctrine of interspousal immunity exists to preserve the sanctity of marriage and to prevent the possibility of collusive lawsuits. This doctrine may be abrogated where there is no marital harmony or unity to preserve and where there is no possibility of collusion. Harris, 252 Ga. at 389 (2). Here, although Mr. and Ms. Bearden did occasionally spend the night together, such evidence without more, does not resolve the factual issue of whether there was a state of marital unity to be preserved. In light of Ms. Bearden’s uncontroverted testimony that they had not lived together as husband and wife for more than six years, could not get along with each other, and had no hope or plan for reconciliation at the time of the accident, Mr. Bearden was not entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. Our law does not presume that where there is some evidence of friendship, civility, or intimacy in a relationship, there exists as a matter of law, a de facto state of marital harmony, notwithstanding all evidence to the contrary. See id.

While the dissent repeatedly characterizes the relationship between the parties as substantial and ongoing, the affidavit testimony must speak for itself. On summary judgment it is inappropriate for this Court to weigh evidence or determine its credibility. Where the facts, as testified to by the parties, create a conflict in the evidence as to a material issue, summary judgment is precluded. HOH Co. v. Ethridge, 168 Ga. App. 20, 22 (2) (308 SE2d 43) (1983). Accordingly, the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to Mr. Bearden on the basis of interspousal tort immunity is reversed.

Judgment reversed.

McMurray, P. J., Birdsong, P. J., Beasley, Blackburn, Smith, Ruffin, Eldridge, JJ, and Senior Appellate Judge Harold R. Banke concur. Andrews, C. J., dissents.