Co., 156 Cal. A party has the right to have the jury instructed on his theory of the case but does not have the right to require his phraseology; the court may modify an instruction or give an instruction of its own in lieu of the one offered provided it correctly instructs the jury on the issue. California follows the Restatement rule that punitive damages can be awarded against a principal because of an action of an agent if, but only if, " '(a) the principal authorized the doing and the manner of the act, or (b) the agent was unfit and the principal was reckless in employing him, or (c) the agent was employed in a managerial capacity and was acting in the scope of employment, or (d) the principal or a managerial agent of the principal ratified or approved the act.' 888.) 865; Celli v. Sports Car Club of America, Inc., 29 Cal.App.3d 511. No useful purpose would be served by detailing them. Kalinsky v. General Dynamics Corp., --- U.S. ----, 101 S.Ct. The study showed that the cost of placing the gas tank over the axle with protective shield was about $10 and that a tank within a tank with polyurethane foam between tanks would have cost about $5. 6 The record reveals that Ford's motion to require plaintiffs to disclose the identity of any "disgruntled" former Ford employee whom they intended to call was triggered by plaintiffs' motion for the identity of the person who developed a federal governmental report on which Ford purported to base a press release concerning the safety of the Pinto. Indeed, as we noted in the Grimshaw section of this opinion, commentators have criticized use of the ratio of exemplary to compensatory damages as a factor for consideration in assessing the propriety of an exemplary damage award and have recommended its abandonment. The "relevant factors" which a jury may consider in applying the Barker "risk-benefit" standard include "the gravity of the danger posed by the challenged design, the likelihood that such danger would occur, the mechanical feasibility of a safer alternative design, the financial cost of an improved design, and the adverse consequences to the product and to the consumer that would result from an alternative design." Mechanical prototypes struck from the rear with a moving barrier at 21-miles-per-hour caused the fuel tank to be driven forward and to be punctured, causing fuel leakage in excess of the standard prescribed by the proposed regulation. In May 1972, a California woman was killed when her Pinto caught fire after being rear-ended on a highway. (Chaput) Grimshaw of Allentown and the late Henry J. Grimshaw, Sr. The judge sustained Ford's objection, denied the motion for mistrial, and admonished the jury that the question was not evidence and that both question and answer should be disregarded. 448.) Plaintiffs' counsel met Mr. Copp for the first time on January 18, 1977, and learned of his potential availability as a witness. 693, 598 P.2d 854; Neal v. Farmers Ins. There was substantial evidence to support a finding that such defect existed. sulphur springs high school football tickets. Ford assigns a number of other remarks by Grimshaw's counsel as misstatements of the evidence or exaggerations or mischaracterization of testimony. 412, 418-419, 111 P. 95; Hale v. San Bernardino etc. No authorities are cited for such a proposition; indeed, as we have. 225, 573, P.2d 443.) The Grays next maintain that the California rule barring punitive damages in a wrongful death case is predicated on an erroneous interpretation of the relevant statutes. 25 The rationale for the rule that only the personal representative of the deceased can maintain certain types of actions is explained in Holland v. McCarthy, 177 Cal. Survivors in addition to his wife include three sons, Duane (Cecilia) Wood, John (Linda) Wood and Richard (Penny) Wood; two daughters, Elizabeth (Bill) Stillwaggon and Karen (Albert) Peterson; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Honor a loved one by planting trees in their memory. He was born on May 2, 1946 to the. 1242, 1, p. ---, eff. 97, 565 P.2d 122.). ", 9 The Barker court held "that a trial judge may properly instruct the jury that a product is defective in design (1) if the plaintiff demonstrates that the product failed to perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used in an intended or reasonably foreseeable manner, or (2) if the plaintiff proves that the product's design proximately caused his injury and the defendant fails to prove, in light of the relevant factors discussed above, that on balance the benefits of the challenged design outweigh the risk of danger inherent in such design." See Category:People from Leeds. 899, 355 P.2d 643; Fuss v. City of Los Angeles, 162 Cal.App.2d 643, 646, 328 P.2d 831.). The burn injuries are horrific. When a prototype failed the fuel system integrity test, the standard of care for engineers. Ford does not assign either of these two remarks by Mr. Robinson as error or misconduct on this appeal. The court stated that the alternative risk-benefit prong of the Barker test was designed to aid the injured party in establishing design defects because " '(i)n many situations the consumer would not know what to expect, because he would have no idea how safe the product could be made.' The question before us is whether a law which denies to heirs of a decedent who died with a claim for punitive damages extant the right to recover such damages in a wrongful death action violates equal protection guarantees. It is not clear that Exhibit No. In addition, the court felt that the admission of the evidence would confuse the jury and would result in undue consumption of time. 4, 171 Cal.Rptr. Pinto, however, was a rush project, so that styling preceded engineering and dictated engineering design to a greater degree than usual. It may well be a medical rarity for death to occur simultaneously with the infliction of a death-causing injury. 416; Barth v. B. F. Goodrich, 265 Cal.App.2d 228, 240-241, 71 Cal.Rptr. Richard Grimshaw Wood " (Id., at p. 108, 95 Cal.Rptr. Evidence Benchbook, 28.14, pp. Send Flowers. He apparently later married Mary Ellen Smith, born 1910. If it would, the contention must be rejected (citation); if it would not, the court must then and only then reach the issue whether on the whole record the harm resulted in a miscarriage of justice within the meaning of the Constitution." Mr. Hews told the judge that the retired Ford employee reported that he had been subject to surveillance, that he suspected his phone had been tapped, and that a pension to which he was entitled had been delayed. Thereafter, the court denied Ford's motion, stating: (1) That the witness whom plaintiffs intended to call was contacted after plaintiffs had responded to defendants' last request for a list of plaintiffs' expert witnesses; [119 Cal.App.3d 781] After plaintiffs called Mr. Copp as a witness (without objection) and during the course of his direct examination, Ford twice moved orally to depose Mr. Copp before he continued with his testimony. carlsbad police scanner live ", Turning to Ford's motions to depose Mr. Copp before he continued with his direct testimony, we find no abuse of discretion in the court's rulings. (Rangel v. Graybar Electric Co., 70 Cal.App.3d 943, 948, 139 Cal.Rptr. Grief Support. 389, 582 P.2d 980), different considerations bear upon the adequacy of the reasons where the amount of punitive rather than compensatory damages is the primary concern. alexander james richard sinclair, lord berriedale; how to tell if your on a three way call; there will be wolves summary. (Rodriguez v. McDonnell Douglas Corp., 87 Cal.App.3d 626, 654-655, 151 Cal.Rptr. Plaintiffs' responses to Ford's demand for the names of the experts and to codefendant Wilson-Ford's motion to compel election were filed before January 10, 1977. (Id., at p. 932, 148 Cal.Rptr. There were sufficient bases for the court's implied determination that the questions were not asked in bad faith and that the admonitions to the jury would avoid the harmful effect of the questions. Sign up for service and obituary updates. There might be legatees under a will, or heirs other than the one suing, or creditors of the decedent entitled to money in payment of their claims, none of whom would be affected by the judgment. His practice is devoted to consumer safety law and he has worked on thousands of products liability cases, vehicle accidents, catastrophic injuries, dangerous drugs and class action litigation matters. Thus, defendant can be said to have been on notice that plaintiffs' investigatory work might uncover additional witnesses. The crash tests revealed that the Pinto's fuel system as designed could not meet the 20-mile-per-hour proposed standard. (People v. La Macchia, 41 Cal.2d 738, 744-745, 264 P.2d 15, overruled on other grounds in County of Los Angeles v. Faus, 48 Cal.2d 672, 680, 312 P.2d 680; Baily v. Kreutzmann, 141 Cal. 888.) As to the second alleged misconduct relating to the order in limine, the question arguably may have been within the scope of proper cross-examination of the adverse expert witness but there is no doubt that failure to approach the bench before asking the question violated the ground rule which had been clarified after the first incident. Evidence, 1276, p. 1180; Jefferson, Cal. (1) Rulings Pertaining To Copp's Identity And Requests To Depose Him: After trial had been under way for a month, defense counsel made an oral motion for the disclosure of the identity of "any disgruntled Ford employee or former employee" whom plaintiffs intended to call as a witness and for the opportunity to depose him before he was called as a witness. Co., supra, 21 Cal.3d 910, 922, 148 Cal.Rptr. [119 Cal.App.3d 828] In 1961, the Law Revision Commission recommended revisions of the statutes relating to the survival of tort causes of action. Its specification of reasons adequately enables a reviewing court to determine whether there is a substantial basis in law and fact for the order granting the conditional new trial. The son of Russell and Aurelia Grimshaw, he was born on Staten Island, NY, where he graduated as. (Civ.Code, 3294; Owen, supra, pp. During the first few months of ownership, they had to return the car to the dealer for repairs a number of times. The gas tank of the car exploded, and the car's driver died two days later. omitted. of Cal., 21 Cal.3d 869, 876, 148 Cal.Rptr. 78.) Under the statute, the claim survives if decedent had a cause of action under Probate Code section 573 at the time of death. Tributes paid following . Richard demonstrated courage and. 225, 573 P.2d 443.) For example, Ford notes that California statutes provide a maximum fine of only $50 for the first offense and $100 for a second offense for a dealer who sells an automobile that fails to conform to federal safety laws or is not equipped with required lights or brakes (Veh.Code, 24007, 24250 et seq. If you would like access to the new version of the H2O platform and have not already been contacted by a member of our team, please contact us at h2o@cyber.law.harvard.edu. Richard Daniel Baca Feb 14, 2023 In loving memory of our father, Richard Daniel Baca, who passed away on February 14th surrounded by loved ones after a short but fierce battle with pneumonia. There was no celebration for Mr. Grimshaw or his family. (Bardessono v. Michels, 3 Cal.3d 780, 794, 91 Cal.Rptr. Richard A. Grimshaw, 66, of Walnutport, passed away Thursday, July 21, 2022 in his home. Where such claim survives and is recoverable in an action by the personal representative of the decedent (Dunwoody v. Trapnell, supra, 47 Cal.App.3d 367, 369, 120 Cal.Rptr. 635, 562 P.2d 316.) 1945) 152 F.2d 941, 943, revd. The Commission did not recommend any changes in the wrongful death statute (Code Civ.Proc., 377) except that the reference to Civil Code section 956 be changed to Probate Code section 573. 125 when he urged the jury to award punitive damages in the sum of $100 million. This month, fans of the infamous Ford Pinto will gather to celebrate the cars 45th anniversary at an annual event called the Pinto Stampede in Carlisle, PA. Its a time for enthusiasts to share stories and bond over their love for Fords budget-friendly subcompact. Ford argues that to instruct the jury so that they might find "malice" if any such "possibility" existed was erroneous; it maintains that an instruction on "malice" in products liability must contain the phrase "conscious disregard of (the probability/a high probability) of injury to others," in order to preclude prejudicial error. 482, 598 P.2d 452; Bertero v. National General Corp., 13 Cal.3d 43, 66, fn. 261, 91 L.Ed. The United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found what it considered to be several rational bases for the legislative classification. Commander Wood served his country in the U.S. Navy for 20 years, retiring in 1976. 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