DocketNumber： 2022CW0945
Filed Date： 11/17/2022
Status： Precedential
Modified Date： 11/22/2022
STATE OF LOUISIANA COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT MITCHELL MEREDITH AND SARAH NO. 2022 CW 0945 ASHLEY MEREDITH, INDIVIDUALLY AND ON BEHALF OF SARAH GRACE MEREDITH VERSUS GARRISON PROPERTY AND NOVEMBER 17, 2022 CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY In Re: Garrison Property and Casualty Insurance Company, applying for supervisory writs, 19th Judicial District Court, Parish of East Baton Rouge, No. 678153. BEFORE : HOLDRIDGE, PENZATO, AND LANIER, JJ. WRIT GRANTED. The district court’s May 31, 2022 judgment granting the motion for new trial filed by the plaintiffs, Mitchell Meredith and Sarah Ashley Meredith, individually and on behalf of Sarah Grace Meredith, is reversed. We find the trial court abused its discretion in granting the motion for new trial because the jury’s interpretation of the evidence was fair, and we cannot say that it was an abuse of the jury’s great discretion to award zero damages while also finding liability, especially in light of evidence of payments already received by the plaintiffs, and the lack of any instruction to the jury regarding consideration of prior payments. See Davis v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 2000-0445 (La. 11/28/00),774 So.2d 84
; Lilly v. Allstate Ins. Co.,577 So.2d 80
(La. App. list Cir. 1990), writ denied,578 So.2d 914
(La. 1991); Brumfield v. Spera, 2009-0566 (La. App. lst Cir. 12/23/09),2009 WL 4982128
, n.5 (unpublished), writ denied, 2010-0124 (La. 4/5/10),31 So.3d 364
. Accordingly, the motion for a new trial is denied. AHP WIL Holdridge, J., concurs. COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT ACH) DEPUTY CLERK OF COURT FOR THE COURT