Dion v. Ford Motor Co.

• Court: Texas Court of Appeals
• Writing for the Court: DICKENSON
• Citation: Dion v. Ford Motor Co., 804 S.W.2d 302 (Tex. App. 1991)
• Decision Date: 07 February 1991
• Docket Number: No. 11-89-155-CV,11-89-155-CV
• Parties: Cyril Ralph DION, Jr., and wife, Janet Dion, Appellants, v. FORD MOTOR COMPANY, Appellee.

Page 302

804 S.W.2d 302

Cyril Ralph DION, Jr., and wife, Janet Dion, Appellants, v. FORD MOTOR COMPANY, Appellee.

No. 11-89-155-CV.

Court of Appeals of Texas Eastland.

Feb. 7, 1991.

Rehearing Overruled March 7, 1991.

Kenneth J. Bower, J.D. Bashline, Otto D. Hewitt III, McLeon, Alexander, Powel & Apffel, P.C., Galveston, for appellants.

David G. Stubbeman, Wagstaff, Harrell, Alvis, Stubbeman, Seamster & Longacre, Burgain G. Hayes, Leslie A. Benitez, Kenneth J. Ferguson, Clark, Thomas, Winters & Newton, Austin, William A. Hicks, McMahon, Smart, Surovik, Suttle,

Buhrmann & Cobb, Abilene, for appellee.

OPINION

DICKENSON, Justice.

This is a products liability case involving a tractor which was manufactured in 1950 and which rolled over on its operator in 1982. The jury found that the tractor was not defectively designed or marketed, and the trial court refused to submit issues on the claim that the manufacturer had a post-sale duty to warn the tractor's owner of its propensity to roll over. We affirm.

Cyril Ralph Dion, Jr. (Dion) and his wife, Janet Dion (Mrs. Dion), sued Ford Motor Company (Ford) attempting to recover $3,000,000.00 for damages sustained by Dion and $1,000,000.00 for Mrs. Dion's loss of consortium plus punitive damages in the sum of $15,000,000.00. They claimed that the tractor was unreasonably dangerous due to the lack of a "rollover protection system" ("ROPS"). ¹ The jury's answers to all of the questions submitted supported Ford's position, and the trial court rendered judgment on the verdict that appellants take nothing by their suit.

Factual Background

The tractor, a Ford Model 8N, was manufactured by appellee in 1950. The 8N tractor had four adjustable wheels and a low center of gravity. It was the first tractor in the industry with a three-point hitch. All of these features added stability to the tractor, but it did not have any type of rollover protection system. None of the tractors on the market at that time had rollover protection systems. The evidence shows that it was not technologically feasible to use any form of rollover protection system for tractors at the time the tractor involved in this lawsuit was manufactured and sold.

Subsequently, there were technological advances which made it possible for Ford and other manufacturers to design and manufacture rollover protection systems, or "ROPS," for tractors. At the present time, "ROPS" are standard equipment on all new Ford tractors. "ROPS" can be purchased for installation on older tractors, including the Ford Model 8N, which were not equipped with "ROPS" when they were originally manufactured and sold.

Dion purchased the tractor involved in this lawsuit from a third party in the spring of 1982. The tractor did not have a "ROPS" system, and Dion was never told that he should secure a "ROPS" even though he had the tractor serviced by a dealer who sold tractors manufactured by Ford.

The accident occurred on October 18, 1982, while Dion and a coworker were loading it onto a trailer after working on an oil and gas lease south of Abilene. As Dion was driving the tractor up a ramp to load it onto the trailer, it reared up and fell off the trailer. The tractor landed on Dion, crushing him between the tractor and the ground. Dion sustained serious injuries in the accident. His medical expenses at the time of trial came to a total of $165,082.83.

The Jury's Verdict

The trial court submitted ten questions to the jury. Those questions and the jury's answers may be summarized as shown:

The tractor was not defectively designed with regard to: [a] the lack of a rollover protection system; [b] its stability; or [c] the lack of a clutch pedal tab.

Ford did not know nor by the application of reasonably developed human skill and foresight should it have known, at the time it sold the tractor, that the tractor had: [a] a propensity to rear, tip, or roll under conditions not reasonably foreseeable to users or [b] a propensity to be unstable when operated with implements intended or reasonably foreseeable for use with the tractor.

Ford was not negligent in its design of the tractor with regard to: [a] stability; [b] lack of a clutch tab pedal; or [c] lack of a rollover protection system.

Ford was not negligent at the time it sold the tractor in failing to warn or adequately warn of the tractor's propensity: [a] to rear, tip, or roll under conditions not reasonably foreseeable to users or [b] to be unstable when operated with implements intended or reasonably foreseeable for use with the tractor.

Dion was negligent in operating the tractor on the date of the accident, and his negligence was a proximate cause of the accident.

The comparative causation issue was not answered because the jury did not find that more than one party's acts or omissions caused the event which caused the injuries.

The "gross negligence" issue was not answered because the jury did not find any negligence of Ford which proximately caused the occurrence.

An award of "0" dollars would fairly and reasonably compensate Dion for past and future physical pain and mental anguish, earnings and earning capacity, disfigurement, physical impairment, and medical expenses.

An award of "0" dollars would fairly and reasonably compensate Mrs. Dion for past and future loss of consortium and household services.

The exemplary damage issue was not answered because the jury did not find that Ford was guilty of gross negligence.

Points of Error

Appellants assert eight points of error on appeal. They contend the trial court erred in overruling their motion for new trial because: (point one) the jury's "no damage" finding reflects "a passion and prejudice that tainted the entire verdict" and (point two) the jury's negative finding on question two was "contrary to the overwhelming weight and preponderance of the evidence and manifestly unjust." Appellants also claim the trial court erred by adding a "substantial change" instruction to: (point three) the design defect issue [question one] and (point four) the marketing defect issue [question two]. Appellants then argue that the trial court erred in excluding evidence: (point five) that Ford was negligent after 1950 in failing to warn Dion of the risk of rollover accidents or to urge him to install rollover protection devices on his tractor and (point seven) that Ford regained sufficient control of the tractor in 1982 to be strictly liable for its failure to give adequate warnings or instructions regarding the tractor's safe use at that time. Appellants also contend that the trial court erred in refusing to submit jury questions on (point six) Ford's post-sale negligence and (point eight) whether Ford regained sufficient control of the tractor before the accident to impose strict liability for its failure to warn Dion at that time.

Jury's "No Damage" Finding

Appellants assert that the jury's "no damage" findings demonstrate a passion and prejudice that warrant a new trial. The evidence presented at trial clearly shows that appellants suffered extensive damages. ² However, it is well established in Texas that no recovery is allowed unless liability has been established. In the absence of liability, the question of damages becomes immaterial. Southern Pine Lumber Co. v. Andrade, 132 Tex. 372, 124 S.W.2d 334 at 335 (1939); Lewis v. Mundy Construction Company, Inc., 781 S.W.2d 333 at 336 (Tex.App.--Houston [14th Dist.] 1989, writ dism'd w.o.j.); King v. Bauer, 767 S.W.2d 197 at 200 (Tex.App.--Corpus Christi 1989, writ den'd); Turner v. Lone Star Industries, Inc., 733 S.W.2d 242 at 246 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1987, writ ref'd n.r.e.); Johnson v. Whitehurst, 652 S.W.2d 441 at 449 (Tex.App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1983, writ ref'd n.r.e.). The jury found that Ford was not liable for appellants' damages. Consequently, the question of damages was immaterial, and any error was harmless. The "no damage" answers do not establish "a passion and prejudice" which would taint the entire verdict. Appellants' first point of error is overruled.

Marketing Defect

Appellants assert in their second point of error that the jury's finding that Ford neither knew nor had reason to know, at the time it originally sold the tractor in 1950, that the tractor had a propensity to tip, roll, or become unstable was against the great weight and preponderance of the evidence. When reviewing a jury verdict to determine the factual sufficiency of the evidence, this Court must consider and weigh all the evidence. A new trial should not be granted unless the jury's verdict is so contrary to the overwhelming weight of the evidence as to be clearly wrong and manifestly unjust. Pool v. Ford Motor Company, 715 S.W.2d 629 at 634 (Tex.1986); Cain v. Bain, 709 S.W.2d 175 at 176 (Tex.1986); In re King's Estate, 150 Tex. 662, 244 S.W.2d 660 at 661 (1951). When considering and weighing the evidence, this Court may not substitute its judgment or opinion for that of the jury. Pool v. Ford Motor Company, supra at 634; Benoit v. Wilson, 150 Tex. 273, 239 S.W.2d 792 at 796 (1951); Thompson v. Wooton, 650 S.W.2d 499 at 501 (Tex.App.--Houston [14th Dist.] 1983, writ ref'd n.r.e.). It is within the jury's province to determine questions of fact, and an appellate court should not set aside the jury findings and award a new trial unless the jury's verdict is manifestly unjust. Pool v. Ford Motor Company, supra at 633; In re King's Estate, supra at 661.

Ford presented evidence that it did not know, nor have any reason to know, that the 8N tractor had a propensity to roll, tip, or become unstable. Dr. Dennis Alfred Guenther, a mechanical engineer who is a member of the American Society of Safety Engineers and the Society of Automotive Engineers, testified that the 8N tractor did not have a tendency to rear up and that it is a very stable vehicle. Dr. Guenther further testified that, when the tractor was manufactured in 1950, it was not unreasonably dangerous for any of its...