230 Conn. 95 | Conn. | 1994
In this civil action concerning a disputed lease agreement, the dispositive issue before us is the scope of appellate review of issues that were raised neither at trial nor on appeal. Two actions arising under a single lease were consolidated at trial. In the first action, the tenant, Daniel Lynch (tenant), and his subtenants, Joseph Lynch and Joan Lynch (subtenants),
The tenant appealed and the lessor cross appealed to the Appellate Court, which affirmed the judgments in favor of the subtenants and the lessor. The Appellate Court concluded, however, that the jury’s zero damages verdict on the tenant’s claim for breach of contract manifested such juror confusion that a new trial on that claim was required. Lynch v. Granby Holdings, Inc., 32 Conn. App. 574, 578-79, 630 A.2d 609 (1993). We granted the lessor’s petition for certification
In the tenant’s appeal to the Appellate Court, he challenged the validity of the zero damages award on the theory that the trial court had misinstructed the jury on mitigation of damages. Neither at trial nor in his brief or oral argument in the Appellate Court did the tenant contend that the damages award was improper for any other reason. The Appellate Court did not address the merits of the trial court’s charge on mitigation. Instead, the Appellate Court concluded that the jury’s award should be set aside because the award manifested confusion “about liability, about damages, about the mitigation [of] damages, or all three. Therefore, the jury’s award of zero damages is improper . . . .” Lynch v. Granby Holdings, Inc., supra, 32 Conn. App. 579.
In the absence of a question relating to subject matter jurisdiction, the Appellate Court had only limited authority to reach the issue of possible confusion in the
As a general matter, the Appellate Court has discretion to decide that a ruling by the trial court warrants plain error review. Before us, the question is whether the Appellate Court abused its discretion in coming to such a conclusion. Finley v. Aetna Life & Casualty Co., 202 Conn. 190, 195-96, 520 A.2d 208 (1987).
In the circumstances of this case, we conclude, for three reasons, that it was an abuse of discretion for the Appellate Court to order a new trial on the ground
Having decided that a new trial was required on the ground of jury confusion, the Appellate Court did not consider the tenant’s claim that the jury’s verdict was improper because of misinstruction on the issue of mitigation of damages. We therefore remand this case to the Appellate Court for consideration of that issue and any other issues that properly were raised in that court by the tenant’s appeal.
The judgment of the Appellate Court is reversed and the case is remanded to that court for further proceedings in accordance with this opinion.
The initial complaint listed only Joseph Lynch as a plaintiff subtenant. On January 22, 1992, however, the trial court granted a motion to add Joan Lynch as a plaintiff subtenant.
A fifth count in the first action was a claim between the subtenants and S. Michael Lassman for breach of contract and negligence. The jury’s award to the subtenants of $2128 on that count was not at issue in the appeal to the Appellate Court and is, therefore, not at issue in this court.
We granted certification to appeal, limited to the following issue: “Whether the Appellate Court was correct under the eircumstance[s] of this case in holding that a jury finding for the plaintiff Daniel Lynch, together with an award of zero damages, was required to be set aside and remanded for anew trial?” Lynch v. Granby Holdings, Inc., 228 Conn. 913, 635 A.2d 1230 (1993).
In view of our resolution of this appeal, we need not decide whether the rule of Malmberg v. Lopez, 208 Conn. 675, 679-80, 546 A.2d 264 (1988), on which the Appellate Court relied, applies to claims for breach of contract as well as to tort claims.