Joel M. HOLLAND, Heather L. Holland, Minors, by Theresa L. Holland, Parent and Natural Guardian, and Theresa L. Holland, in her right, Appellees. v. Edward E. MARCY, Appellant, Joel R. Holland, Appellee.
No. unknown
Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.
Decided Sept. 28, 2005.
883 A.2d 449
Argued March 1, 2004.
Id. at 1023-1025 (footnote omitted). Because I do not believe that Appellee established a cause of action for compensatory damages, Appellee is precluded from seeking punitive damages in the instant matter.
While I disagree with the Majority regarding the presence of sufficient evidence with respect to Appellee‘s negligence claim, I am able to join the Opinion because I agree with its analysis regarding the breach of warranty issue, its discussion of the requirements for a claim for punitive damages, and its ultimate conclusion that Appellee is nоt entitled to punitive damages.
Gregg Alan Guthrie, for Pennsylvania Defense Institute.
Joanna Kay Budde, Erie, for Edward E. Marcy.
Anthony John Sciarrino, for Joel M. Holland, et al.
Matthew Stephen Crosby, Scott B. Cooper, Harrisburg, for Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association.
Before: CAPPY, C.J., and CASTILLE, NIGRO, NEWMAN, SAYLOR, EAKIN and BAER, JJ.
Justice BAER.
This Court granted review of this case in order to address the division between the Superior Court and the Commonwealth Court on the following question of law: Whether full tort remedies are available to children of an owner of a registered but uninsured vehicle or whether they, like their parent, may only pursue limited tort remedies pursuant to Section 1705 of the Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law (the “MVFRL“),
The facts of the case are straightforward and uncontested. Theresa Holland and Joel R. Holland were divorced, and the parents of minor Appellees, Joel and Heather Hollаnd. Theresa owned the car involved in the accident leading to this case. At the time of the accident, Joel R. was driving, accompanied by Theresa and the children, Joel and Heather. Prior to the time of the accident, Theresa had purchased two insurance policies on the subject automobile. At the time of
This incident happened when Appellant Edward E. Marcy, while traveling in an easterly direction on State Route 20 in Erie County, made an abrupt left turn from the right hand lane and collided with the Hollands’ car which was traveling in the same direction in the left hand lane. The children received treatment for injuries resulting frоm the accident.6
The Hollands filed suit against Marcy to recover economic and noneconomic damages. After partial discovery, Marcy filed a motion for summary judgment.7 He asserted that the Holland children were precluded from seeking noneconomic damages because the children‘s injuries were not serious, and recovery was thus impermissible because their mother, Theresa Holland, was the owner of a registered but uninsured vehicle, and therefore was deemed to have chosen the limited tort alternative under Section 1705(a)(5). He contended that the children were bound to their mother‘s deemed choice under Section 1705(b)(2) because they were “insureds,” as defined in Section 1705(f).8 The Honorable Shad Connelly
The Hollands appealed to the Superior Court. The Honorablе Joan Orie Melvin authored the majority opinion for a fractured en banc court, reversing the trial court, concluding that full tort remedies were available to the children, and finding that Section 1705(a)(5) bound only Theresa, as the owner of the registered but uninsured vehicle to the limited tort option. The majority rejected the reasoning of the Commonwealth Court in Hames, concluding that the court failed to provide an analysis of the relevant sections and definitions provided in the MVFRL. Moreover, the majority found that the Commonwealth Court improperly equated the term “named insured” in subsection (b)(2) with “owner” in (a)(5) and thus disregarded the statutory definitions of the terms and created a fictitious insurance policy under which the children would be “insureds” subject to the limited tort option. The majority observed that the Commonwealth Court apparently reached this conclusion in part to avoid providing greater rights to the сhildren of uninsured motorists than to children of financially responsible parents who opted for limited tort coverage. Judge Orie Melvin rejected the suggestion that the children of uninsured motorists would be better off than children whose parent chose limited tort coverage due to a number of other consequences resulting from a parent‘s failure to insure a vehicle, such as criminal penalties and fines, lack of uninsured motorist coverage, and potential tort claims against the parent, if the parent was at fault in an accident.
Instead, the majority followed the Superior Court‘s precedent in Ickes, which examined subsections (b)(2) and (b)(3) along with (a)(5) and the definition of “named insured” in subparagraph (f) and concluded that the clear and unambigu
The majority further found that reaching a decision which binds the children would not advance the purpose of Section 1705(a)(5), which is to punish the owner of the uninsured vehicle.9 The court noted that a number of other Superior and Commonwealth Court cases have interpreted other sections of the MVFRL punishing “owners” and concluded that the term “owner” was limited to individuals who have an “actual cognizable property right in the vehicle as well as de facto indicia of ownership.” Id., quoting Bethea v. Pennsylvania Fin. Responsibility Assigned Claims Plan, 407 Pa.Super. 57, 595 A.2d 122, 126 (1991) (reversing summary judgment for defendant where questions of fact remained as to whether wife hаd sufficient indicia of ownership to preclude recovery of uninsured motorist benefits under the Assigned Claims Plan which excludes uninsured owners pursuant to
In compliance with the rules of statutory construction, specifically
Judge Hudock filed a concurring statement in which he joined the statutory analysis of the majority but asserted his belief that the result was unfair in that it “affords greater rights to minor children whose parents flout the law by not buying insurance than to children of more responsible parents who purchase liability insurance, but who chose the limited tort option.” Holland, 817 A.2d at 1092 (Hudock, J., concurring). Judge Hudock did not accept the rationale offered by the majority concerning the other benefits provided to children whose рarents obtain limited tort insurance, and instead called on the legislature to correct what he perceived as an injustice. Judge Todd also filed a concurring statement in which she agreed with Judge Hudock that an inconsistency existed in that minor children of irresponsible drivers are afforded greater rights than are the children of responsible parents who purchase limited liability insurance, but declined to join the concurrence due to her belief that, while the
Judge Bowes filed a dissenting opinion joined by Judges Johnson and Lally-Green. The dissent stated that the majority‘s conclusion was contrary to the legislative intent and argued for a remand on the issue оf whether Joel‘s injuries were “serious.” Judge Bowes argued that the words “deemed to have chosen” in subsection (a)(5) express “the legislature‘s intent to provide for the fictionalized creation of an insurance policy under which the uninsured owner of a vehicle has affirmatively selected the limited tort option.” Holland, 817 A.2d at 1095 (Bowes, J., dissenting). Thus, she argued that the uninsured owner is deemed to be a “named insured” under a limited tort policy which would bind the owner‘s children as “insureds” under subsection (b)(2).
The dissent asserted that the majority‘s approach does not give meaning to the term “have chosen” and instead interprets it as if the statute used the term “bound by” as used in subsection (d).11 She argues that if the legislature had desired to restrict 1705(a)(5) to only the owner then they would have used the narrower term “bound by” rather than “deemed to have chosen” which provides for a fictionalized insurance policy under which the owner can be сonsidered a “named insured.” The dissent further argued that its reading of the statute serves the purpose of the 1990 amendments, which was to address the increasing costs of insurance by providing incentives to individuals to purchase insurance and to decrease the number of uninsured motorists. Although the dissent
In accordance with Judge Bowes‘s dissent in the case sub judice and the Commonwealth Court in Hames, Marcy argues that Section 1705(a)(5) and (b)(2) bind the children of an owner of a registered but uninsured vehicle to the owner‘s deemed election of the limited tort option. He asserts that to permit them to recover noneconomic damages would be in violation of the intent and policy underlying the MVFRL, in that it would provide an incentive to parents who decide consciously to remain uninsured in order to provide their children with full tort remedies. Moreover, as mentioned above, he argues that it would provide the children of registered but uninsured owners with benefits in excess of those provided to responsible parents who choose the limited tort option.12 In contrast, the Hollands assert that the Superior Court in the case sub judice correctly determined that the clear and unambiguous lаnguage of Section 1705 did not limit the Holland children to limited tort recovery, but rather provided for recovery of noneconomic damages pursuant to subsection (b)(3) because the children were not owners, named insureds or insureds.13
As all the parties have conceded, the issue before the Court is a question of statutory interpretation and thus is a
We agree with the Superior Court‘s conclusion that the language of Section 1705 is clear and unambiguous. We reject the reasoning of the Superior Court dissent in the case sub judice and the Commonwealth Court in Hames and instead conclude that the language of subsection (a)(5) only applies to “[a]n owner of a currently registered private passenger motor vehicle who does not have financial responsibility.”
Not only is the language clear, but it is consistent with other provisions of the MVFRL which punish only the owner. See
Although the clarity of the language does not require us to look to the purposes of the statute, we observe that the language is entirely consistent with such purposes. This Court has previously interpreted subsections of Section 1705 and noted that a primary concern of the legislature in passing the MVFRL was the rising cost of consumer automobile insurance “created in part by the substantial number of uninsured motorists who contributed nothing to the pool of insurance funds from which claims were paid.” Hoffman, 839 A.2d at 1018 (citations omitted). Section 1705(a)(5) rectifies this problem by providing a disincеntive to uninsured owners in that they will be deemed to have chosen the limited tort option.
The restriction on the owner in (a)(5) is but one of a number of disincentives that clearly outweigh the suggestion that the children of uninsured owners will be “better off” than children of parents who choose the limited tort option. In cases such as the present where the uninsured owner-parent is not at fault in the accident, the parent and the children would not have an insurer from which they could recover benefits provided by uninsured/underinsured coverage in the event that the tortfeasor was not insured. Furthermore, the owner of a registered but uninsured vehicle would be denied recovery of first party benefits under any other policy, which include medical, income loss, accidental death, and funeral benefits under Section 1714 or denied recovery under the Assigned Claims Plan pursuant to Section 1752(a)(3). Moreover, thе owner would be subject to the penalties, including criminal charges, fines, and suspension of operating privileges, under Section 1786. These disincentives could result in significant
Additionally, we note that this Court has previously concluded that the MVFRL should be “accorded a liberal construction, in favor of the insured” and that the legislative history suggests that the General Assembly made a “conscious attempt to rule in favor of the full tort alternative” when there was a question as to which coverage applied. Hoffman, 839 A.2d at 1019, n. 8. Therefore, although we need not resort to statutory construction due to the clear language of the statute, we are further satisfied that the clear language is not contrary to the purposes of the MVFRL or to the majority of the decisions applying the MVFRL. For all the foregoing rea
Justice NEWMAN files a concurring opinion in which Justice NIGRO joins.
Justice EAKIN files a dissenting opinion in which Justice CASTILLE joins.
CONCURRING OPINION
Justice NEWMAN.
This is a situation where applying the plain language of one section of a statute leads to an absurd result, which is dissonant with the purpose of the statutory scheme in its entirety. I join in the result that the Majority reaches because of the unambiguous words of Section 1705(b)(3) of Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law (MVFRL),
I believe that our holding today produces a result that directly opposes the goal of the MVFRL. We have held that
Had Theresa Holland complied with the mandate of the financial responsibility law, and purchased insurance with the limited tort option, her children would have been limited by her choice and unable to pursue noneconomic damages. Because Holland drove without insurance, and paid no premium whatsoever, her children are now entitled to pursue noneconomic damages, in the same way they would have had their mother bought the full tort option. Stated most simply, the direct result of the Majority‘s decision is to encourage and reward failure to comply with the law, an outcome that the legislature surely did not intend when it implemented the MVFRL. While I am sympathetic to the plight of some families who may be unable to afford automobile insurance, even with the lower premium charged for the limited tort option, the fact is that the MVFRL requires it. To comply with the law, an individual need not buy full tort and can maintain financial responsibility by choosing the limited tort option. However, the problem in this case is that Theresa Holland did neither; rather, she drove without insurance. The inability to afford automobile insurance does not allow for an exception to the requirement of maintaining financial responsibility.
Section 1705(b)(3) states that “[a]n individual who is not an owner of a currently registered ... vehicle and who is not a named insured ... shall not be рrecluded from maintaining an action for noneconomic loss ....”
I note that although the words in Section 1705(b)(3) are clear, the fact is that the Superior Court and the Commonwealth Court reached two directly opposite holdings in Ickes v. Burkes, 713 A.2d 653 (Pa.Super.1998), and Hames v. Philadelphia Hous. Auth., 696 A.2d 880 (Pa.Cmwlth.1997). In Ickes, the Superior Court held that full tort remedies were available to the wife of the owner of a registered but uninsured vehicle where the wife did not have an ownership interest in the vehicle. In Hames, the Commonweаlth Court concluded that children of an owner of a registered but uninsured vehicle were bound by their mother‘s deemed selection of the limited tort option. I believe that these two conflicting determinations reflect the dilemma that this matter presents—applying the literal words of one section of the statute yields a result that the legislature likely did not intend to govern the outcome in the instant case. The fractured Superior Court Opinion in this matter, too, indicates the difficulty of reconciling the words of Section 1705(b)(3) with the intent of the MVFRL. Holland v. Marcy, 817 A.2d 1082 (Pa.Super.2002).
Although the clear wording of Section 1705(b)(3) calls for the result that the Majority articulates, I believe that the legislature did not intend this outcome, because the legislature “does not intend a result that is absurd, impossible of execution, or unreasonable.”
The Majority correctly points out that the issue before the Court is one of statutory construction, and, as such, is a
I do not believe that the legislation was promulgated to bestow greater benefits on children of the uninsured than on those whose parents purchased insurance. The Majority intimates that providing full tort benefits to children of uninsured parents will not contribute to escalating insurance costs, labeling that a “theoretical hypothesis,” which is “necessarily suspect,” due to a lack of record evidence regarding the addition of costs to the system. Majority Opinion at 207 n. 15, 883 A.2d at 456 n. 15. I maintain that there can be little doubt that allowing recovery of full tort remedies in the absence of the payment of any premium adds costs to the system. In Windrim, we stated that “in passing the [MVFRL], the Legislature was primarily concerned with the rising consumer cost of automobile insurance, created in part by the substantial number of uninsured motorists who contributed nothing to the pool of insurance funds from which claims were paid.” Windrim, 641 A.2d at 1156 (internal citation omitted) (emphasis added). Therefore, I take exception to this assertion and posit that we can take judicial notice of the fact that when people recover full tort remedies for which they have paid no concomitant premium, the system incurs a cost for which it is not compensated. I see no need to provide record evidence of what is, in fact, a truism.
Sections 1705(a) and (b) provide numerous instances showing that the tort option chosen by thе insured binds the members of the insured‘s household. In these other sections involving “election” of tort options, the legislature has indicated that the status of children, with respect to limited or full tort, follows that of their parent.3 The children of insured parents who chose limited tort are circumscribed by the parental choice. Section 1705(a)A. The children of parents who select full tort are entitled to that coverage. Section
However, Section 1705(a)(5), which states that an owner of a registered car who does not maintain financial responsibility is “deemed to have chosen the limited tort alternative,” does not repeat the language in preceding sections reflecting that the choice of the deemed insured binds the members of the household of the insured. In the absence of that specific language, the Majority correctly concludes that it would be necessary for the legislature to insert additional words into Section 1705(a) to demonstrate its intention that children be bound by the choices of their parents.
The legislature also prescribes the outcome for individuals who own registered cars and who have not purchased insurance, i.e., who do not maintain financial responsibility. These people are “deemed to have chosen the limited tort alternative.” Section 1705(a)(5). They are “deemed to have chosen” limited tort because they did not exercise the option themselves. Section 1705(a)(5) is included in the same section as Section 1705(a)(1)A., which stаtes that Pennsylvania law “give[s] you the right to choose a form of insurance that limits your right and the right of members of your household to seek financial compensation....”
Judge Bowes in the Concurring and Dissenting Opinion in the fractured Superior Court decision in the instant matter noted that the “deemed to have chosen” language “evinces an intent by the legislature to create the legal fiction of an
For this reason, I join the Majority Opinion in affirming the determination of the Superior Court.
Justice NIGRO joins this concurring opinion.
DISSENTING OPINION
Justice EAKIN.
I respectfully disagree with the majority‘s determination that the language of the MVFRL clearly determined this question, which obviously is not addressed by the statute itself. I believe the majority‘s decision produces a result contrary to both the legislative intent of the MVFRL and the canons of statutory construction. While the meaning of the words in § 1705 might appear unambiguous when each subsection is plucked from the statute and read in isolation, statutes are not to be interpreted in such a manner. See, e.g., Pennsylvania Dep‘t of Transportation v. Taylor, 576 Pa. 622, 841 A.2d 108, 118 (2004) (Nigro, J., dissenting) (“in accomplishing our goal of ascertaining legislative intent, we do not interpret the words of a statute in isolatiоn from each other, but rather, in the context in which they appear“); O‘Rourke v. Pennsylvania Dep‘t of Corrections, 566 Pa. 161, 778 A.2d 1194, 1201 (2001) (“we should not interpret statutory words in isolation, but must read them with reference to the context in which they appear“); Consulting Engineers Council v. State Architects Licensure Bd., 522 Pa. 204, 560 A.2d 1375, 1377 (1989) (appellant‘s argument fails as it is premised upon excerpting one subsection from context in which it appears—effect of one subsection can only be understood in relation to provisions in rest of section); Philadelphia Housing Authority v. Pennsylvania Labor Relations Bd., 508 Pa. 576, 499 A.2d 294, 299 (1985) (“A cardinal rule of statutory construction is
Statutes are considered to be in pari materia when they relate to the same persons or things, and statutes or parts of statutes in in pari materia shall be construed together, if possible.
In her concurring and dissenting opinion in this matter, Judge Bowes noted the circumstances under which the 1990 amendments to the MVFRL—which pronounced the full tort and limited tort options—were enacted. Judge Bowes cited spiraling auto insurance costs and the resultant increase in the number of uninsured motorists as the foremost reasons for the 1990 amendments to the MVFRL. Holland v. Marcy, 817 A.2d 1082, 1096 n. 7 (Pa.Super.2002) (Bоwes, J., concurring and dissenting, joined by Johnson and Lally-Green, JJ.) (citing Ronca, J.R.; Sloane, L.A.; Lutz, D.L.; Shollenberger, T.A.; and Mundy, J.F.2001 at §§ 1.1, 1.2. Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Insurance: An Analysis of the Financial Responsibility Law, Second Edition (2001 Revision)). Judge Bowes noted the legislature enacted the 1990 amendments to the MVFRL to deal with the high costs of auto insurance and to make auto insurance affordable for uninsured motorists by establishing limited tort benefits, which could be purchased at
Pursuant to the MVFRL, only a “named insured” under an insurance policy can choose a tort option. By indicating that an uninsured automobile owner is сonsidered to “have chosen” the limited tort option, the legislature intended the uninsured vehicle owner to be treated like a named insured under an insurance policy. When read in pari materia,
75 Pa.C.S. § 1705(a)(5) and§ 1705(d) support such an interpretation of the MVFRL.... Clearly, this language evinces an intent by the legislature to create the legal fiction of an insurance policy where the uninsured owner of a vehicle stands in the shoes of a named insured.
Id., at 1094-95 (footnote omitted).
An uninsured parent who is deemed to have chosen the limited tort alternative pursuant to § 1705(a)(5) must be treated the same as a “named insured” on a limited tort insurance policy. Therefore, pursuant to § 1705(b)(2), the limited tort option also applies to the minor children of the “named insured.” I would reverse the determination of the Superior Court and remand for findings as to whether Joel Holland sustained permanent serious disfigurement permitting recovery under the limited tort optiоn.
Justice CASTILLE joins this dissenting opinion.
Notes
(b) Application of tort options.—
* * * * *
(3) An individual who is not an owner of a currently registered private passenger motor vehicle and who is not a named insured or insured under any private passenger motor vehicle policy shall not be precluded from maintaining an action for noneconomic loss or economic loss sustained in a motor vehicle accident as the consequence of the fault of another person pursuant to applicable tort law.
§ 1705. Election of tort options
(a) Financial responsibility requirements.—
* * * * *
(5) An owner of a currently registered private passenger motor vehicle who does not have financial responsibility shall be deemed to have chosen the limited tort alternative.
(b) Application of tort options.—
* * * * *
(2) The tort option elected by a named insured shall apply to all insureds under the private passenger motor vehicle policy who are not named insureds under another private passenger motor vehicle policy. In the case where more than one private passenger motor vehicle policy is applicable to an insured and the policies have conflicting tort options, the insured is bound by the tort option of the policy associated with the private passenger motor vehicle in which the insured is an occupant at the time of the accident if he is an insured on that policy and bound by the full tort option otherwise.
“Insured.” Any individual residing in the household of the named insured who is:
(1) a spouse or other relative of the named insured; or
(2) a minor in the custody of either the named insured or relative of the named insured.
§ 1921. Legislative intent controls
* * * * *
(b) When the words of a statute аre clear and free from all ambiguity, the letter of it is not to be disregarded under the pretext of pursuing its spirit.
Each person who elects the limited tort alternative remains eligible to seek compensation for economic loss sustained in a motor vehicle accident as the consequence of the fault of another person pursuant to applicable tort law. Unless the injury sustained is a serious injury, each person who is bound by the limited tort election shall be precluded from maintaining an action for any noneconomic loss....
Moreover, we respectfully disagree with the dissent that the clear language of Section 1705(a)(5) becomes ambiguous when read in pari materia with Section 1705(d). Instead, as noted previously in this opinion and in the concurring opinion, we conclude that the clarity of Section 1705(a)(5) and (b)(3) is reinforced when read in pari materia with the othеr subsections of Section 1705, discussed above, see also Concurring Opinion Op. at 214-16, 883 A.2d at 461, as well as other sections of the MVFRL, supra at 209-11, 883 A.2d at 458. Because the legislature painstakingly defined the terms it used and repeatedly designated when it would bind anyone other than the owner, we must leave it to that body to determine whether the clear language of Section 1705 must be altered to better effect legislative intent.
(a) General rule.—Except as provided in section 1714 (relating to ineligible claimants), a person who suffers injury arising out of the maintenance or use of a motor vehicle shall recover first party benefits against applicable insurance coverage in the following order of priority:
(1) For a named insured, the policy on which he is the named insured.
(2) For an insured, the policy covering the insured.
(3) For the occupants of an insured motor vehicle, the policy on that motor vehicle.
(4) For a person who is not thе occupant of a motor vehicle, the policy on any motor vehicle involved in the accident. For the purpose of this paragraph, a parked and unoccupied motor vehicle is not a motor vehicle involved in an accident unless it was parked so as to cause unreasonable risk of injury.