Chandler v. Aero Mayflower Transit Company

• Decision Date: 21 February 1967
• Docket Number: No. 10640.,10640.
• Parties: William E. CHANDLER, Jr., Lewie E. Merritt, Jr., Selma G. Jones, Norwood Capital Corporation, a corporation, Richland Galleries, a corporation, and The Pickens Bank, a corporation, Appellants, v. AERO MAYFLOWER TRANSIT COMPANY, Inc., a corporation, Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fourth Circuit

374 F.2d 129 (1967)

William E. CHANDLER, Jr., Lewie E. Merritt, Jr., Selma G. Jones, Norwood Capital Corporation, a corporation, Richland Galleries, a corporation, and The Pickens Bank, a corporation, Appellants, v. AERO MAYFLOWER TRANSIT COMPANY, Inc., a corporation, Appellee.

No. 10640.

United States Court of Appeals Fourth Circuit.

Argued December 6, 1966.

Decided February 21, 1967.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

William E. Chandler, Jr., Greenville, S. C. (William T. Jones and James E. Moore, Greenwood, S. C., on brief), for appellants.

E. W. Mullins and R. Bruce Shaw, Columbia, S. C. (Claude M. Scarborough,, Jr., and Nelson, Mullins, Grier & Scarborough, Columbia, S. C., on brief), for appellee.

Before BOREMAN, BRYAN and CRAVEN, Circuit Judges.

CRAVEN, Circuit Judge:

This is a suit by William E. Chandler, Jr. (shipper)¹ against Aero Mayflower Transit Company (carrier) to recover the value of household property destroyed by fire while in transit in the carrier's van between Columbia, South Carolina, and San Francisco, California. The principal question for decision is whether the shipper is entitled to recover the fair market value of his property on the basis of the carrier's liability as it existed at common law or whether by reason of the provisions of 49 U.S.C.A. Section 20(11) he is limited in his recovery to the "released value of the property."²

At the close of the evidence offered by the shipper, the carrier moved for a directed verdict that the shipper recover the released value of the property at the rate of thirty cents per pound, amounting here to $1,860.00. The shipper contends that the true value of the property was $31,500.00. From the allowance of the motion for directed verdict³ the shipper appeals.

The rule in the federal courts with respect to the power of the district judge to withdraw a case from the jury is not so narrow as in some state jurisdictions. We do not follow the scintilla rule; "a scintilla of evidence is not sufficient to require the submission of an issue to a jury" in the federal courts, United States v. J. E. Bohannon Co., 232 F.2d 756 (6th Cir. 1956).

But even so, "in deciding whether a genuine issue of fact exists, the party against whom the motion is made is entitled to the benefit of every inference that may reasonably be drawn in his favor. The court should not supplant the jury if there is any room whatever for disagreement." Richmond Television Corp. v. United States, 354 F.2d 410, 414 (4th Cir. 1965). The standard for weighing evidence for submission to the jury is subject only to the admonition that "mere speculation be not allowed to do duty for probative facts, after making due allowance for all reasonably possible inferences favoring the party whose case is attacked." Galloway v. United States, 319 U.S. 372, 395, 63 S.Ct. 1077, 1089, 87 L.Ed. 1458 (1943).

From the admissions, stipulations, and evidence offered by the shipper, much of it coming from employees or former employees of the carrier, we think it clear that a jury could permissibly determine the facts to be as related below.

On October 23, 1962, employees of the Carolina Bonded and Storage Company, general agent for the carrier, loaded the household property into a van at the shipper's home. The shipper placed his signature on several pages, with multiple carbons, containing an inventory of goods on the van.

A bill of lading was not signed by the shipper at his home. According to Larry Shealy, former Carolina Bonded dispatcher and warehouse manager who had handled arrangements for the shipment, this was because the shipper "was not there to sign it." However, sometime after the goods had been placed in the moving van and before October 25, the shipper signed the bill of lading, which was dated October 23, 1962.

The bill of lading and a company "order for services," carrying the date of October 22, 1962, were signed at the request of Shealy in his office after the goods were in transit.⁴ The jury could permissibly conclude that the shipper did not examine the documents before signing them because he relied upon Shealy's statement to him that he was only resigning the inventory of goods shipped since his earlier signature had not been effective on the copies. The shipper testified that Shealy asked him to "sign these inventory papers" and he signed and "that's the only thing I have ever signed for him."

On November 2, 1962, the shipper's goods were destroyed by fire due to the probable negligence of the carrier.

Both the bill of lading and the order for services contained notice to the effect that unless a different value is declared the shipper releases the value at thirty cents per pound for each article, and on neither was a different value declared.⁵ The carrier's tariff, which had been filed with and approved by the Interstate Commerce Commission, contained the same terms.

Larry Shealy admitted that in discussing the carrier's services with the shipper he misinformed and mislead him into possibly believing that the thirty-cents-a-pound limitation did not apply to recovery for damages or loss of property caused by the fault or negligence of the carrier.⁶

It is also admitted that the carrier never issued the bill of lading as required by 49 U.S.C.A. Section 20(11), i. e., it never delivered the original or any copy by mail or otherwise to the shipper until after destruction of his property.⁷

The jury could have found from the testimony of the district supervisor of the Interstate Commerce Commission that the carrier, contrary to the requirements of 49 U.S.C.A. Section 6(1), failed to post its tariff for public inspection in Carolina Bonded's office and also that the shipper had not been informed that he could have his household goods transported at a higher valuation for an increase in cost.⁸

The carrier admits that in violation of 49 C.F.R. Section 176.12 it failed to give the shipper a copy of an information bulletin which is required by the Interstate Commerce Commission to be furnished prior to the time goods are moved. This bulletin contains an explanation of transportation rates and released values.

In short, all of the evidence, with special emphasis on the admissions and testimony of persons associated with the carrier, tends to show that the carrier did nothing right and almost everything wrong in connection with the handling of this shipment — except for getting the signature of the shipper on the order for services and on the bill of lading, which in the latter case admittedly occurred at Carolina Bonded's office after the shipment had begun its journey and under circumstances far from clear.

This case does not turn on the legal effect of a bill of lading. Indeed, because there was no delivery, there was, strictly speaking, no bill of lading. See, e. g., 13 C.J.S. Carriers § 125, at 239 (1939).

The resolution of this controversy, rather, is grounded ultimately in federal statutory law and specifically in the terms of 49 U.S.C.A. Section 20(11).⁹ Although this section of the Interstate Commerce Act provides that interstate "carriers shall be liable for the full, actual loss, damage or injury to property delivered to them, a carrier's liability may be limited by agreement upon a `released value' of a shipment." Strickland Transp. Co. v. United States, 334 F.2d 172, 175 (5th Cir. 1964). (Emphasis added.) Limitation of liability can be effected by the carrier only when in compliance with an Interstate Commerce Commission "order authorizing special rates dependent upon either a declaration of value by the shipper in writing or a released value in writing." Glickfield v. Howard Van Lines, 213 F.2d 723, 725 (9th Cir. 1964). The shipper necessarily may "agree in writing" only after he has had the opportunity to inspect the written terms. See, e. g., Rhoades, Inc. v. United Air Lines, Inc., 340 F.2d 481, 486 (3d Cir. 1965). "Although action in writing by the shipper is plainly required, his signature is not necessary but it does furnish good evidence that he did declare or agree in writing." Caten v. Salt Lake City Movers & Storage Co., 149 F.2d 428, 432 (2d Cir. 1945); accord, American Ry. Express Co. v. Lindenburg, 260 U.S. 584, 43 S.Ct. 206, 67 L.Ed. 414 (1923) (no signature required).

No challenge is made to the shipper's authorization by the ICC to carry property at the "released value." Thus, the question for us comes to whether the "released value" in the present circumstances was "agreed upon in writing" by the shipper in the sense these words are used in 49 U.S.C.A. Section 20(11).

Congress no doubt used these words to indicate that a shipper should agree in the same sense that one agrees or assents to enter into a contractual obligation. See, e. g., Rhoads, Inc. v. United Air Lines, Inc., 340 F.2d 481, 486 (3d Cir. 1965). And such assent is effective only if given after "a fair opportunity to choose between higher or lower liability by paying a correspondingly greater or lesser charge * * *." New York, N. H. & H. R. R. v. Nothnagle, 346 U.S. 128, 135, 73 S.Ct. 986, 990, 97 L.Ed. 1500 (1953).¹⁰

In determining whether there was "agreement" upon a released value courts are, therefore, to apply principles of contract law, and more particularly in the present case the law as it relates to standardized form contracts such as those relied upon by the carrier here.¹¹

In cases where, as in the instant controversy, questions of mistake and fraud are raised in connection with the formation of contracts limiting the liability of a common carrier, relevant circumstances and policies call for a not so strict application of pertinent principles of contract law to afford reasonable protection to the shipper. This is so because arrangements limiting liability contravene a strong public policy expressed in the common law¹² come within a carefully defined exception to the general thrust of Section 20(11) of the Interstate Commerce Act placing on the...