Bohrer v. DeHart

• Decision Date: 22 June 1998
• Docket Number: No. 97SC317,97SC317
• Parties: 98 CJ C.A.R. 3175 Christa G. BOHRER, Petitioner, v. Daniel DeHART, Respondent.
• Court: Colorado Supreme Court

Page 472

961 P.2d 472

98 CJ C.A.R. 3175

Christa G. BOHRER, Petitioner, v. Daniel DeHART, Respondent.

No. 97SC317.

Supreme Court of Colorado En Banc.

June 22, 1998.

Rehearing Denied July 27, 1998.

Seelen & Associates, Joyce Seelen, Denver, for Petitioner.

Quigley, Hibschweiler, Johnson & Ritter, LLC, James D. Johnson, Sheila E. Barthel, Denver, for Respondent.

Justice HOBBS delivered the Opinion of the Court.

Christa G. Bohrer (Bohrer) appeals from the court of appeals decision in Bohrer v. DeHart, 944 P.2d 633 (Colo.App.1997) (Bohrer II ), reinstating that court's prior decision in Bohrer v. DeHart, 943 P.2d 1220 (Colo.App.1996) (Bohrer I ).

Bohrer had sued Daniel DeHart (DeHart), the First Methodist Church of Greeley (Church), and the Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church (Conference) on multiple claims arising from DeHart's improper counseling and sexual relationship with Bohrer while DeHart was a youth minister for the church. We granted certiorari in Bohrer I, vacated the court of appeals judgment, and remanded the case to that court for reconsideration in light of our decision in Bear Valley Church of Christ v. DeBose, 928 P.2d 1315 (Colo.1996). In Bohrer II, the court of appeals determined that its reasoning in Bohrer I remained sound even after Bear Valley and reinstated its judgment. Bohrer, DeHart, the Church, and the Conference all sought certiorari review from the court of appeals decision in Bohrer II. ¹

We now reverse the judgment of the court of appeals and reinstate the jury's verdict against DeHart.

I.

Bohrer was an active member of the Church when she began counseling with DeHart in the summer of 1983. She was 12; DeHart was 28. Bohrer had problems at home. After initially discussing these problems with DeHart's wife, Bohrer began regular counseling sessions with DeHart, a youth minister for the Church and the Conference. As counseling went on, DeHart began to confide in Bohrer regarding his marital problems. He also undertook to isolate her from others in the community, urging her not to seek advice from others, saying that many of the people close to her were untrustworthy.

The relationship gradually developed into one involving physical touching. When Bohrer was fourteen, DeHart engaged her in sexual intercourse. The sexual activity ended when Bohrer was eighteen and began her college education.

Bohrer sought counseling while in college and eventually confronted DeHart, the Church, and the Conference regarding DeHart's abuse of her. The Conference approached DeHart about the allegations and accepted, "under complaint," DeHart's resignation of his ministerial credentials. The Conference decided that no further action or investigation was necessary.

Bohrer subsequently filed a criminal complaint against DeHart. The criminal case resulted in a plea bargain and a sentence which included work release on one charge, probation on another, and no immediate restitution. Bohrer then filed this civil suit in the District Court for the City and County of Denver, alleging outrageous conduct and breach of fiduciary duty against DeHart and negligent hiring and supervision, vicarious liability, breach of fiduciary duty, and outrageous conduct against the Church and the Conference. Bohrer also sought punitive damages against all three defendants. DeHart claimed at trial that the sexual relationship was consensual and commenced only after the pastoral counseling ended.

At the close of trial, the trial judge instructed the jury several times not to award duplicative damages to Bohrer in the event of a finding of liability. For example, Instruction No. 39 states, "If you find for Plaintiff on more than one claim for relief, you may award her damages only once for the same injuries, damages and losses." Instruction No. 46 notified the jury that, "If you find in favor of the plaintiff against two or three defendants, you shall divide the total amount of damages incurred by the plaintiff between the culpable defendants in the proportionate amount which you determine was caused by each defendant." The district court provided special verdict forms to the jury for each defendant; these forms also admonished the jurors not to "duplicate any damages you awarded" against the other defendants.

The court also instructed the jury regarding the duration of involvement of each of the defendants under each of the potential theories for recovery. DeHart's counseling of Bohrer commenced in 1983. The court told the jury that conduct after February 22, 1991, the date that DeHart surrendered his credentials to the Conference, could not be used against the Conference on the negligent hiring or supervision claim. Regarding the fiduciary duty claim, the court instructed the jury that there was no fiduciary relationship between the Conference and Bohrer before January 24, 1991, the date that Bohrer complained to the Conference about DeHart's conduct. Finally, the court instructed the jury that the Church's duty to supervise DeHart ended in August of 1985, when DeHart ceased working as a minister for the Church.

The jury found for Bohrer and against DeHart on the breach of fiduciary duty and outrageous conduct claims and for Bohrer and against the Church and the Conference on the negligent hiring and supervision and breach of fiduciary duty claims. The jury awarded Bohrer $375,000 in compensatory damages according to the following allocation: (1) $187,500 against DeHart, (2) $150,000 against the Conference, and (3) $37,500 against the Church. The jury also awarded Bohrer punitive damages of $187,500 against DeHart and $150,000 against the Conference, but it did not award punitive damages against the Church.

On appeal, the court of appeals affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded for a new trial on damages. The court of appeals affirmed the jury's determination of DeHart's liability for breach of fiduciary duty, outrageous conduct, and punitive damages. It also affirmed the judgment regarding the Conference's liability for negligent hiring and supervision and the award of all costs jointly and severally against all defendants. ² The court of appeals reversed the judgments as to the Conference's liability for breach of fiduciary duty and for punitive damages. It also reversed the compensatory damage awards against DeHart and the Conference and the punitive damage award against DeHart. The court then remanded the case for a new trial "to determine the allocation of fault among defendants; the amount of compensatory damages to be awarded against DeHart and the Conference; the amount of punitive damages to be awarded against DeHart; and whether to award punitive damages against the Conference and, if so, the amount of that award." Bohrer I, 943 P.2d at 1223.

We granted certiorari in Bohrer I, vacated the judgment of the court of appeals, and remanded the case back to that court for reconsideration in light of our opinion in Bear Valley. Upon reconsideration, the court of appeals determined that the Bear Valley opinion, although reversing another division of the court of appeals, had not criticized any of the reasoning relied upon by the Bohrer I court. See Bohrer II, 944 P.2d at 634. The court of appeals accordingly affirmed its prior opinion and remanded the case to the district court for a new trial on damages.

The parties then sought certiorari in Bohrer II. While certiorari was pending, the Conference and the Church settled with Bohrer. DeHart is the only remaining defendant; hence, the only remaining issue is the court of appeals decision to remand the case for a new trial to determine the amount of compensatory damages for which DeHart is liable based on the allocation of fault amongst the parties and the amount of punitive damages for which DeHart is liable.

II.

We hold that the district court's failure to provide the jury with computational verdict forms in compliance with section 13-21-111.5, 5 C.R.S. (1997), was error. However, the error was harmless because the district court properly instructed the jury on apportionment of damages, and the verdict forms do not demonstrate that the jury ignored the instructions. Accordingly, we reverse the court of appeals and reinstate the jury verdict against DeHart.

A.

Section 13-21-111.5

And Special Verdict Forms

In tort cases involving multiple defendants, the General Assembly has determined that "no defendant shall be liable for an amount greater than that represented by the degree or percentage of the negligence or fault attributable to such defendant." § 13-21-111.5(1), 5 C.R.S. (1997). This legislative enactment "rectifies the inequity" caused by the common law rule of joint and several liability whereby any one responsible party could have been liable for all losses which the plaintiff incurred. Moody v. A.G. Edwards & Sons, Inc., 847 P.2d 215, 217 (Colo.App.1992).

Section 13-21-111.5(2) sets forth a jury verdict procedure for pro rata liability cases:

(2) The jury shall return a special verdict, or, in the absence of a jury, the court shall make special findings determining the percentage of negligence or fault attributable to each of the parties and any persons not parties to the action of whom notice has been given pursuant to paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of this section to whom some negligence or fault is found and determining the total amount of damages sustained by each claimant. The entry of judgment shall be made by the court based on the special findings, and no general verdict shall be returned by the jury.

(Emphasis added.) This type of special verdict "will tend to ensure" that pro rata liability "achieves its basic goal of apportioning damages on the basis of fault." Victor E. Schwartz, Comparative Negligence § 17-4(h) (3d ed. 1994 & Supp.1997) (discussing the use of essentially similar special verdict forms in comparative negligence cases). This is so because requiring the jury to specifically determine...