409 A.2d 597 | Vt. | 1979
The proceedings below in this case are so fraught with error as to require a reversal and new trial as a matter of substantial justice.
The trial court, of its own motion, treated the hearing “somewhat as a small claims case,” despite the fact that the
Moreover, perhaps because of the summary nature of the hearing below, no mention of the defendant Louise Losorda appears in the transcript. Nor is the original contract between the parties, which, on argument, they concede to have run to a corporate entity rather than to the individual plaintiff for whom judgment was rendered, mentioned in the record.
Only the fact that the outlined errors were clearly induced by the trial court’s sua sponte actions dissuades us from entering judgment here for the defendants. We will, rather, reverse and remand for a new trial.
Judgment reversed and cause remanded.