Rosa Alverio sued Robert Robinson and Enrico Farina for injuries she sustained in a motor vehicle accident. The jury found in favor of plaintiff and against defendant Enrico Farina in the amount of $4,459.95. Jerry A. Lindheim, Esquire, on behalf of plaintiff has filed an appeal of this court’s judgment on the jury’s verdict, entered on October 25,1999.
I. PROCEDURAL HISTORY
Plaintiff Rosa Alverio filed a complaint against defendants Enrico Farina and Robert Robinson in April of 1998. The complaint claimed that Alverio suffered injuries as the result of a motor vehicle accident caused by the defendants’ negligence. Since the amount in controversy was $50,000 or less, the parties went to compulsory arbitration on January 7,1999. Alverio did not proceed with her case against defendant Robert Robinson. The board of arbitrators found against Farina and awarded Alverio $50,000. On January 22, 1999, Farina appealed this award to the court of common pleas for a trial de
II. FACTUAL HISTORY
On January 27, 1997, Alverio was riding as a passenger in the front seat of a vehicle being driven by Basilia Vargas on Rising Sun Boulevard in Philadelphia. Alverio claimed she was injured when the car in which she was riding was struck from behind by a vehicle driven by defendant Robert Robinson. Robinson’s vehicle was hit in the rear by Farina’s car. After the accident, police came to the scene and took statements. Then Basilia Vargas drove Alverio home in the vehicle which was involved in the collision.
After the collision, Alverio felt pain in her neck, shoulder, lower back, head and brain. She went home, took some Motrin and laid down. Four days later she went to Champlost Medical Center, which was recommended to her by a friend at the scene of the accident. Alverio began physical therapy at Champlost with hot baths, cold
At the time of the accident in question, Alverio was not working. She testified she had not worked since 1995. Alverio stopped working because of a nervous disorder. Before the nerve problem arose, Alverio operated an industrial machine making clothing for children. Alverio claimed her injuries prevented her from lifting heavy objects and dressing herself. She also could not bathe herself, could not sleep well and could not lift her arm beyond a certain level.
Alverio was examined by a doctor chosen by the defense, Dr. Richard Bennett, whose deposition testimony was offered during trial via videotape. During her examination by Dr. Bennett, Alverio complained of pain along her left arm and in her left ankle, as well as sensory changes on her left side. Dr. Bennett found no objective evidence of injury or loss of sensation. Dr. Bennett
Farina also presented stipulated testimony from Richard King. King was an investigator for Egis International Inc., who was hired by Farina to conduct surveillance of Alverio. King observed Alverio February 11, 1999, and May 7 and 25-27, 1999. The jury was shown footage from the surveillance tapes made by Egis International Inc. The video showed Alverio lifting herself into a minivan with her left hand, driving the van and working at the deli counter of A & S Grocery making sandwiches, bagging groceries and serving customers.
III. ISSUE
Whether the Trial Court Erred in Refusing To Grant a New Trial Because the Damages Awarded Alverio Equaled the Stipulated Amount of Her Unpaid Medical Bills
IV. DISCUSSION
A. The Trial Court Has Discretion Whether To Grant a New Trial
It is settled that the grant or denial of a new trial rests in the discretion of the trial court. Kiser v. Schulte, 538
A jury is free to believe all, some or none of the testimony presented by witnesses. Neison v. Hines, 539 Pa. 516, 520, 653 A.2d 634, 637 (1995). The jury is entitled to reject any and all evidence up to a point at which the verdict would be “so disproportionate to uncontested evidence as to defy common sense and logic.” Neison, 539 Pa. at 521, 653 A.2d at 637. A trial court may only grant a new trial when the jury’s verdict is so contrary to the evidence that it “shocks one’s sense of justice.” Kiser, 538 Pa. at 226, 648 A.2d at 4. The review of a trial court’s grant or denial of a new trial is limited to whether there was an abuse of discretion or error of law. Neison, 539 Pa. at 520, 653 A.2d at 636.
In this case, the verdict is not so contrary to the evidence offered as to shock anyone’s conscience or sense of justice. The only factual issue to be determined was whether Alverio suffered compensible injury as a result of the collision with Farina, and what damages she incurred in connection with any injury. The parties offered
B. The Trial Court Correctly Denied Plaintiff’s Request for a New Trial Because the Medical Evidence Was Disputed
In Neison, supra, the injuries to the plaintiff were objectively acknowledged by both parties, liability was stipulated, but no damages at all, i.e., zero damages were awarded to the plaintiff. Neison, 539 Pa. at 519, 653 A.2d at 636. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania held that the trial court was correct in granting a new trial in this situation, because the verdict was contrary to the instructions of the court and/or contrary to the evidence. The court specifically noted that the defense in that case was not that the plaintiff had suffered no injuries, nor any pain and suffering, but that the injuries had not lasted long in duration. Neison, 539 Pa. at 520, 653 A.2d at 636. The defendant’s own expert testified that the plaintiff showed a healed sprain of the neck, scapular and shoulder blade. Neison, 539 Pa. at 522, 653 A.2d at 637.
However, in Livelsberger v. Kreider, 743 A.2d 494 (Pa. Super. 1999), the Superior Court reached a different result, and held that “[T]he plaintiff is entitled to a new trial when the jury fails to award damages and there is uncontroverted evidence that the plaintiff suffered injuries as a result of defendant’s negligence.” Id., 743 A.2d at 495. (emphasis added) In Livelsberger, the plaintiff attempted to analogize its case to that of Neison when the Livelsberger jury awarded the plaintiffs no damages. Id. at 495. However, the Superior Court distinguished this case because the injuries in Livelsberger and the causation thereof were disputed. Kreider presented expert testimony that questioned the cause of Mrs. Livelsberger’s injuries. Id. at 495. Another expert acknowledged that Mrs. Livelsberger may have sustained a cervical sprain but nothing else. Id. at 496. In addition, the severity of the accident was called into question by photographs of the vehicles presented by the defense. Id. at 495. Even though the plaintiff was transported immediately to a hospital and treated subsequently with her family physician, the denial of a new trial was upheld on appeal because the injuries were controverted and a question of fact was properly decided by the jury. Id.
In support of her motion for a new trial, in this case, Alverio cited numerous cases which this court finds in
However, the injuries in this case were disputed by the parties. Alverio’s experts agreed that Alverio was injured, but their diagnoses were vague. On the other hand, Dr. Bennett, the defense medical expert, did not concede that Alverio was injured, and expressly disagreed with the analysis of the only objective medical report offered by Alverio to prove her injuries. Dr. Bennett found no objective signs of injury. Moreover, the photographs offered by the defense undermined the severity of the impact as described by Alverio. The pictures showed minimal damage to the vehicles involved in the collision. In addition, the surveillance video offered by Farina was extremely damaging to Alverio’s credibility in
C. Even If the Injuries Were Not Disputed, Alverio’s Reliance on a Case Decided Subsequent to Alverio That Verdict Is Erroneous
In her brief support of her post-trial motion for a new trial, Alverio relied on Burnhauser v. Bumberger, 745 A.2d 1256 (Pa. Super. 2000). The case is cited in support of Alverio’s proposition that a verdict for the exact amount of unpaid medical expenses demands a new trial. While it is true that a new trial was awarded on that basis, the evidence from the medical experts was, again, uncontroverted. Both parties’ experts agreed that Ms. Burnhauser had suffered injuries as a result of the accident between the parties. Id. at 1258. The only disputed point was the nature and extent of said injuries. Id. Therefore, in accordance with the aforementioned line of cases, including Mano v. Madden, a new trial was ordered because the evidence proving the plaintiff was injured was uncontroverted.
Obviously, Burnhauser is not applicable to the case at bar since it was decided January 2000, over two months after Alverio’s jury verdict of October, 1999. Moreover,
In this case, even if applicable, the rule could not have been applied by this court and should not be applied retroactively. In this situation, the purpose of the rule is to ensure that jury verdicts are not below an unconscionable amount once liability has been assessed. The amount awarded Alverio was deemed fair by the jury in light of the conflicting testimony and evidence. The reliance on a prior rule is significant because there would be no reason for the issue to be fully litigated if the defendants were already aware of the liability and damages that ultimately would be assessed to them. The administration of justice surely would be affected if this case was applied retroactively to all pending actions in which the injuries are not controverted. Courts will deviate from retroactivity if the application will “lead to an inequi
IV. CONCLUSION
Based upon the foregoing, this court properly denied Alverio’s motion for a new trial as the verdict of the jury was based on credibility determinations within the domain of the jury as the fact-finder. Therefore, Alverio’s motion was properly denied and her appeal should be dismissed.
