Lead Opinion
The issue in this appeal is whether an appellate court may review a properly preserved weight of the evidence claim where the judge who presided over the trial resigned from the bench without ruling on the claim. For the following reasons, we hold that this circumstance is an exception to the general rule that an appellate court may not review a weight of the evidence claim in the first instance, and that the Superior Court properly denied appellants’ weight claim on the merits. Accordingly, we affirm the Superior Court order, which affirmed the judgment in fаvor of appellee.
Appellants brought the instant negligence action in January of 1995, alleging that appellee’s insertion of dental implants in Charles Armbruster’s mouth and subsequent course of treatment deviated from acceptable dental practices. The matter proceeded to a week-long jury trial before the Honorable James M. Munley, of the Court of Common Pleas of Lackawanna County. On November 20, 1997, the jury returned a verdict finding that appellee was negligent, but that his negligence was not a substantial factor in bringing about Mr. Armbruster’s harm.
On December 1, 1997, appellants filed a post-trial motion, arguing at some length that the jury verdict was against the weight of the evidence. Within that motion, appellants also requested transcription of the trial testimony of appellant Charles Armbruster, appellee, and two other witnesses. On December 9, 1997, Judge Munley entered an order directing the stenographer to transcribe the testimony of those witnesses “to aid the Plaintiff in the preparation of his Brief in Support” of the post-verdict motion. The order further directed that “Plaintiffs
On December 10, 1997, appellee objected to the request for transcription, arguing that the testimony of a fifth witness should also be transcribed. By order dated December 16, 1997, Judge Munley granted this request. The docket reflects no further activity until over ten months later, i.e., the ordered transcript was not filed, the plaintiffs did not request argument, the defendant did not filе a responsive pleading to the post-verdict motion, the trial court issued no ruling on the pending motion, and neither party praeciped for entry of judgment under the Rules of Civil Procedure. In late October of 1998, however, there was a flurry of activity; predictably enough, this activity followed upon Judge Munley’s resignation from the Common Pleas bench on October 26, 1998, to assume a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
On October 28, 1998, appellee simultaneously filed two pleadings in the Court of Common Pleas: (1) an answer to Plaintiffs’ Motion for Post-Trial Relief in which he requested that post-trial relief be denied; and (2) a praecipe for entry of judgment on the jury verdict pursuant to Pa.R.C.P. 227.4, because more than one hundred and twenty days had elapsed since the filing of appellants’ post-trial motion.
On appeal, appellants again alleged that the jury verdict was contrary to the weight of the evidence. A divided рanel of the Superior Court denied the claim on the merits. The panel majority noted that it was “aware of the many cases in our jurisprudence that hold a review of a weight of the evidence claim is reserved exclusively for the trial court judge who presided over the trial.” Armbruster v. Horowitz,
[tjhere are a host of reasons why a judge may not be available to review a weight of the evidence claim. To require a new trial in each of those cases would be a disservice to the litigants and an unnecessary burden on the judiciаl process.
Id. Turning to the merits of appellants’ weight claim, the court noted that the jury found that appellee’s negligence did not cause Charles Armbruster’s injuries. The court further noted that appellee had presented evidence thát those injuries were caused by Armbruster’s own poor oral hygiene. Since there was adequate support for the defense theory obviously accepted by the jury, the panel majority concluded, the verdict did not “shock the conscience” and relief was unwarranted.
The late former President Judge Cirillo dissented. Citing to Commonwealth v. Brown,
This Court granted review to determine the proper role оf an appellate court in reviewing a preserved weight of the evidence claim where the trial judge did not pass on the question and is no longer available to pass on it. Since this is a purely legal question, our review is plenary. See, e.g., Wagner v. Wagner,
Appellants argue that it has long been the law in this Commonwealth that the roles of a trial judge and an appellate tribunal are distinct with respect to a challenge to the weight of the evidence. This is so because the question of evidentiary weight is uniquely suited to the trial court function, while an appellate court sits only in review of the trial court’s exercise of discretion in ruling on the claim. While they acknowledge that the Superior Court has, in certain instances, addressed post-trial claims where the trial court failed to rule on the claims and/or did not file an opinion pursuant to Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a),
Appellee countеrs that there are any number of reasons that a trial judge may be rendered unavailable to entertain a post-trial motion,' including death, illness, retirement, or resignation, and to require a new trial in each of these instances would not serve the interests of justice. In such instances, he argues, equity and judicial economy dictate that the appellate court stand in the shoes of the trial court and rule upon the claim, rather than automatically award a new trial. In addition, appellee notes that the Superior Court has entertained a variety of appeаls where a Rule 1925(a) opinion was not filed by the trial court below and thus, as here, was deprived of the trial court’s views on often-discretionary issues. Finally, appellee notes that the jury’s verdict was entirely consistent with his testimony and that of the defense experts. Since it is well-settled that questions of credibility are solely for the fact-finder, appellee argues, there is no justification for a trial court or an appellate court to second-guess that determination.
The general rule in this Commonwealth is that a weight of the evidence claim is primarily addressed to the discretion of the judge who actually presided at trial. See, e.g., Commonwealth v. Widmer,
This Court also consistently recognized that, while an appellate court may review whether the trial court abused its discretion in deciding a weight claim, its role is not to consider the underlying question in the first instance. Id. at 1191. Appellate review is generally cabined in this regard because of the “disparity in vantage points” between trial and appellate courts:
An appellate court by its nature stands on a different plane than that of a trial court. Whereas a trial court’s decision to grant or deny a new trial is aided by an on-the-scene evaluation of the evidence, an appellate court’s review rests solely upon the cold record.
Thompson,
None of the decisions holding that an appellate court may not review a ruling on a weight claim by considering the evidence itself in the first instance, however, raised the question presented here, i.e., whether an appellate court is barred from reviewing such a claim where the judge who presided over the trial never ruled on the claim and is now permanently unavailable to do so. Upon careful consideration of this issue of first impression, we agree with the Superior Court majority that this circumstance warrants an exception to the
If we were to conclude that an appellate court is totally barred from entertaining a weight claim in the first instance, then, in a situation such as the case sub judice, where the actual trial judge is unavailable to rule upon the claim, we would be left to choose between two extreme and unpalatable courses: (1) a rule automatically requiring the grant of a new trial for any properly preserved weight claim; or (2) a rule rendering such claims automatically unavailable to the parties in these instances.
The burden upon the judicial process that would be occasioned by a rule requiring a new trial whenever the trial judge is unavailable to rule upon a post-verdict motion challenging evidentiary weight is no less extrеme. Weight of the evidence claims are, of course, common in trial practice and are often articulated by rote and in the sketchiest of terms. See Brown,
The second extreme course—ie., a rule that appellate courts cannot pass upon a weight claim in the first, instance where the trial judge is unavailable, and thus the claim cannot be pursued on appeal—is not a fair accommodation of the competing interests either. Litigants should not, through no fault of their own, have the arsenal of appellate claims available to them diminished due to factors entirely beyond their control.
Given the obvious deficiencies in either of the extreme courses, we agree with the Superior Court majority below that, whеre a properly preserved weight of the evidence claim is raised on appeal and the judge who presided at trial failed to rule on the claim and is now permanently unavailable to do so, the claim must be reviewed by the appellate tribunal in the first instance. We are confident in the ability of our appellate courts to apply this exception appropriately, with an eye to the delicate balance that exists between the jury’s exclusive role in assessing credibility, and our longstanding recognition of the power in courts to allow justicе another opportunity to prevail when a verdict nevertheless shocks the judicial conscience. In this regard, we note that our appellate courts are well-familiar with weight claims. Although appellate review has been confined to an assessment of the trial judge’s exercise of discretion, it obviously has been necessary to consider the proper role and contours of the weight of the evidence doctrine, in evaluating that exercise of discretion. This holding exists as an exception to our general rule.
Having concluded that the Superiоr Court properly reached the merits of appellants’ weight claim, we turn to the question of whether the court correctly denied the claim. Since the Superior Court was in no better position than this Court to review the claim in the first instance, our review is plenary.
Appellants concede that appellee “presented] the jury with evidence to suggest that Mr. Armbruster’s poor hygiene caused his implants to fail.” Brief for Appellants at 6. They argue, however, that they are entitled to a new trial because “the substantial weight of the evidence presented to the jury, including thе testimony and concessions of both of Dr. Horowitz’s experts, supported a finding that Dr. Horowitz’s negligence was a substantial factor in causing Mr. Armbruster’s implant failures, substantial pain and suffering,
This case was a prototypical “battle of the experts.” Appellants presented the testimony of Dr. Charles Musto and Dr. Anthony Captline, who testified that appellant Charles Armbruster’s dental implants failed because appellee negligently placed them into diseased areas of his mоuth. Appellee countered with two experts of his own, Drs. Theodore Paladino and Alfred Heller, who testified that Armbruster’s poor oral hygiene, as well as his smoking and drinking habits—all facts to which Armbruster admitted—were the true cause of his injuries. Upon hearing the testimony, observing the witnesses’ demeanors, and judging their credibility, the jury obviously chose to credit appellee’s experts. We cannot conclude that such a choice between two permissible views was so contrary to the weight of the evidence as to shock one’s sense of justice. Indeed, had the trial court granted a new trial on such grounds on this record, it would have been an abuse of discretion. Accordingly, we hold that the Superior Court properly denied appellants’ weight of the evidence claim.
For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the order of the Superior Court affirming the judgment in favor of appellee.
Notes
. Pa.R.C.P. 227.4 provides, in pertinent part:
In addition to the provisions of any Rule of Civil Procedure or Act of Assembly authorizing the prothonotary to enter judgment upon a praecipe of a party, the prothonotary shall, upon praecipe of a party:
(1) enter judgment upon the verdict of a jury or the decision of a judge following a trial without jury, or enter the decree nisi as the final decree, if
(b) one or more timely post-trial motions are filed and the court does not enter an order disposing of all motions within one hundred and twenty days after the filing of the first motion. A judgment entered pursuant to this subparagraph shall be final as to all parties and all issues and shall not be subject to reconsideration.
A Comment to the Rule emphasizes that it "is optional with the partiеs,” as it allows parties either to “move the case along,” or, if time is not of the essence or settlement negotiations are continuing, the parties may simply await the decision of the court.
. Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a) provides:
Upon receipt of the notice of appeal the judge who entered the order appealed from, if the reasons for the order do not already appear of record, shall forthwith file of record at least a brief statement, in the form of an opinion, of the reasons for the order, or for the rulings or other matters complained of, or shall specify in writing the place in the record where such reasons may be found.
. Appellee also argues that since Pa.R.C.P. 227.4 provides that a judgment entered pursuant thereto ‘‘shall be final as to all parties and all issues and shall not be subject to reconsideration,” remand for a new trial is not permissible because this would amount to a "reconsideration” of the judgment. We disagree. The language noted by appellee means only that once judgment has been entered on the docket pursuant to Rule 227.4, “[reconsideration [by the trial court] is strictly prohibited and the case is ready in its entirety for the appellate process.” Conte v. Hahnemann Univ. Hosp.,
. The cases cited by appellee in which our intermediate appellate courts have reached the merits of post-trial claims even though the trial court failed to file a Rule 1925(a) opinion are not strictly on point; as appellants note, none involved review of claims arguably requiring the trial court's assessment of credibility, such as the instant claim that the jury verdict was against the weight of the evidence. See Perkins v. Desipio,
. In addition to review by the appellate court and remand for a new trial, a third theoretical option would be remand for consideration of the weight claim by a successor trial judge. A successor trial judge with no prior connection to the case, however, would be in the same position as an appellаte judge in ruling on a weight claim; both would be confined to the "cold record” of the trial proceedings in conducting their review. As the Superior Court has noted: "[a] cold record does not become any warmer in the hands of a trial judge who has no prior connection with the case than it does in the hands of an appellate judge.” Commonwealth v. Upshur,
. To reverse the presumption is particularly inappropriate given that a trial judge has the power to grant a new trial sua sponte if he determines that the interests of justice so require. See Commonwealth v. Powell, 527 Pa. 288,
. In this regard, we note that not all courts indulge the notion that trial courts should be able to upset jury credibility determinations upon weight grounds. See Austin v. Ridge,
[T]he central problem [is] what freedom does (he trial court have to review and set aside a jury verdict where the evidence presented to the jury is legally sufficient to sustain that verdict?
In delimiting this discretion, our Court has adopted an intermediate position between those states which leave trial courts virtually unfettered and permit the judge to review jury determinations as a thirteenth juror, on the one hand, and those, on the other hand, which restrict the discretion of the trial court to ordering a new trial only where, on the evidence presented to it, a jury could not reasonably have reached its verdict. In hewing to this intermediate path, our Court has adopted the prevailing rule in the federal courts and one which is widely followed in the state courts.
Id. (footnotes omitted).
Dissenting Opinion
dissenting.
I would reverse the order of the Superior Court and remand this matter to the common pleas court for a new trial. I would apply the general rule that an appellate court may not conduct the initial review of a weight of the evidence claim in cases, such as this, where the trial judge is not available to address the claim.
A litigant seeking review of a weight of evidence claim should not be disadvantaged by the absence of the trial judge, a circumstance not within the control of the litigant. When an intermediate appellate court conducts the initial review of the litigant’s wеight of the evidence claim under such circumstances, the litigant is effectively deprived of his or her right of appellate review. Where the trial judge who presided over the trial is available to dispose of the litigant’s weight of evidence claim, the litigant is assured of initial review of the claim as well as the right to appellate review of that claim. Where, as here, the trial judge is not available, the litigant is deprived first of the opportunity for review of the weight of the evidence by the jurist who observed the proceedings, and then is deprived of the right to appellatе review of the weight of evidence claim. Such litigants will have to file a petition for allowance of appeal with this Court, which is discretionary rather than automatic.
In balancing the competing interests addressed by the majority, I would strike the balance so that a litigant will receive review of weight of evidence claims initially by a trial judge who has presided over the case and thorough appellate review of the disposition of those claims. This would preserve the distinct roles that the trial courts and appellate courts serve, as we explained in Thompson v. City of Philadelphia,
An aрpellate court by its nature stands on a different plane than a trial court. Whereas a trial court’s decision to grant or deny a new trial is aided by an on-the-scene evaluation of the evidence, an appellate court’s review rests solely upon a cold record. Because of
In reviewing the entire record to determine the propriety of a new trial, an appellate court must first determine whether the trial judge’s reasons and factual basis can be supported. Unless there are facts and inferences of record that disclose a palpable abuse of discretion, the trial judge’s reasons should prevail. It is not the place of an appellate court to invade the trial judge’s discretion any more than a trial judge may invade the province of a jury, unless both or either have palpably abused their function.
To determine whether a trial court’s decision constituted a palpable abuse of discretion, an appellate court must “examine the record and assess the weight of the evidence; not, however, as the trial judge, to determine whether the preponderance of the evidence opposes the verdict, but rather to determine whether the court below in so finding plainly exceeded the limits of judicial discretion and invaded the exclusive domain of the jury.” Where the record adequately supports the trial court, the trial court has acted within the limits of its judicial discretion.
Id. at 672-73 (citations omitted; emphasis supplied).
■ The separate functions served by the trial court and by the intermediate appellate court when reviewing a weight of the evidence claim should not be merged, especially where to do so would deprive a litigant of appellate review of the claim. For this reason, I dissent.