Jaswell Drill Corp. v. General Motors Corp.

• Decision Date: 28 May 1987
• Docket Number: No. 86-014,86-014
• Citation: 129 N.H. 341,529 A.2d 875
• Parties: , 4 UCC Rep.Serv.2d 1106 JASWELL DRILL CORPORATION v. GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION.
• Court: New Hampshire Supreme Court

Page 875

529 A.2d 875

129 N.H. 341, 4 UCC Rep.Serv.2d 1106

JASWELL DRILL CORPORATION v. GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION.

No. 86-014.

Supreme Court of New Hampshire.

May 28, 1987.

Eaton, Solms, Mills & McIninch, Manchester (Richard Mills on briefs, and Steven Ruddock, on briefs and orally), for plaintiff.

Myers, Jordan & Duffy, Concord (David W. Jordan, on briefs and orally), for defendant.

BATCHELDER, Justice.

Jaswell Drill Corporation (Jaswell), the plaintiff in this third-party action for contribution and indemnity, appeals the dismissal of its claim by the Superior Court (Bean, J.). We affirm in part and reverse in part.

D.G. Foster Artesian Well Co. (Foster), the plaintiff in the underlying action, is suing Jaswell for negligence, breach of contract, and breach of warranty for damages allegedly arising from the purchase and operation of a Jaswell drilling rig. In turn, Jaswell filed a third-party claim against General Motors Corporation (GM), alleging that any damages sustained by Foster are directly attributable to a defective component part; that is, an industrial diesel engine supplied by GM. Jaswell argues that it is entitled to contribution or indemnity from GM for any damages which may be awarded to Foster. Foster has also commenced an action against GM which is similar to its action against Jaswell, and the three actions have been consolidated by the superior court. On December 11, 1985, the superior court granted GM's motion to dismiss Jaswell's claim based on our decisions in Consolidated Utility Equipment Services, Inc. v. Emhart Manufacturing Corp., 123 N.H. 258, 459 A.2d 287 (1983) and Hamilton v. Volkswagen of America, 125 N.H. 561, 484 A.2d 1116 (1984), because Jaswell's claim was "actually an action for contribution."

In the interim since the superior court's decision, and after initial briefing and oral argument of this appeal, the legislature enacted a statute which supersedes the common law rule precluding contribution among tortfeasors. The Act Relative to Tort Reform and Insurance, Laws 1986, 227:2 (the Act), adopts the rule of contribution among tortfeasors and allows apportionment of damages. Therefore, we ordered the case to be reargued and permitted the filing of supplemental briefs, requesting the parties to consider whether Jaswell's claim should be determined under the common law rule in effect at the time Jaswell filed this action against GM, see, e.g., Hamilton supra, or whether it should be determined under the Act, the relevant provisions of which "apply to causes of action arising on or after July 1, 1986." Laws 1986, 227:22. This issue turns upon whether the term "causes of action" should be construed as referring to causes of action for contribution or to the underlying causes of action in tort.

The plaintiff argues that the "causes of action" referred to in section 22 are causes of action for contribution, so that the Act rather than the common law applies in this case. The plaintiff argues further that it is entitled to contribution under the Act. The defendant, on the other hand, argues that when the term "causes of action" is considered in light of other provisions of the statute, it is clear that it refers to the underlying causes of action in tort.

We note that some jurisdictions have applied their contribution statutes in cases where the underlying tort occurred prior to the effective date of the statute on the ground that judgment was to be entered or a settlement agreed to after that date. When Colorado enacted the Uniform Contribution Among Tortfeasors Act, for example, it was effective as to "events occurring on and after July 1, 1977." 1977 Colo. Sess. Laws, ch. 195, sec. 2. The Colorado Supreme Court held that the operative "event" referred to in that statute was the settlement or judgment which gave rise to the claim for contribution, rather than the "event" which gave rise to the underlying tort action. Coniaris v. Vail Associates, Inc., 196 Colo. 392, 395, 586 P.2d 224, 225-26 (1978). This decision was based on the rationale that:

"[N]o cause of action accrues to a joint tortfeasor until there has been a judgment against him or a settlement of the claim. A claim for contribution is an action separate and distinct from the underlying tort. The rights and obligations of the tortfeasors flow, not from the tort, but from the judgment or settlement itself."

Id. at 395, 586 P.2d at 225 (citation omitted); but see Coos-Curry Elec. Co-op, Inc. v. Curry County, 26 Or.App. 645, 554 P.2d 601 (1976) (no right to contribution where underlying tort occurred prior to effective date of statute). The plaintiff argues that the view espoused by the Coniaris court is the better view, and given the facts of that case, we agree. We will not, however, adopt that position because New Hampshire's Act is substantially different from the Uniform Contribution Among Tortfeasors Act construed in Coniaris. Compare RSA 507:7-d to -i with COLO REV. STAT. § 13-50.5-101 et seq. (Supp.1986).

The legislature's new approach is very similar to the Uniform Comparative Fault Act, 12 U.L.A. 38-49 (Supp.1987) in its treatment of comparative fault, together with apportionment of damages and contribution among tortfeasors. RSA 507:7-d, entitled "Comparative Fault," is similar to the former provision concerning comparative negligence, RSA 507:7-a, which it replaces. One notable difference is that former RSA 507:7-a provided for apportionment of damages when a contributorily negligent plaintiff recovered "against more than one defendant," while RSA 507:7-d makes no provision for apportionment of damages. Instead, under the new statutory scheme, RSA 507:7-e provides for apportionment of damages in all actions, and RSA 507:7-e to -h establish a system for contribution because judgments will be entered based on the rules of joint and several liability. When the legislature repealed RSA 507:7- a to -c and enacted RSA 507:7-d to -i, it clearly intended these provisions to function as a unified and comprehensive approach to comparative fault, apportionment of damages, and contribution.

Considered in isolation, the term "causes of action" in section 22 of the Act seems ambiguous because it is not immediately clear whether it to refers to causes of action for contribution or the underlying causes of action in tort. However, "the meaning of a statute is to be determined from its construction as a whole and not by construction of isolated words and phrases." In re John Kevin B., 129 N.H. 286, ---, 525 A.2d 281, 283 (1987) (quoting King v. Town of Lyme, 126 N.H. 279, 284, 490 A.2d 1369, 1372 (1985)). When considered in conjunction with section 2 of the Act, codified as RSA 507:7-d to -i, it becomes clear that "causes of action" refers to causes of action sounding in tort.

If "causes of action" were construed to mean only causes of action for contribution as suggested by the plaintiff, the effect would be to make RSA 507:7-d, the new comparative fault provision, which refers only to tort actions, apply in cases where the underlying tort cause of action had arisen before the effective date of the Act. We reject that construction because it is contrary to the plain meaning of the statutory language which provides that the Act applies to "causes of action arising after July 1, 1986." Laws 1986, 227:22 (emphasis added). In addition, we do not believe that "causes of action" can be read to refer to both causes of action for contribution and causes of action in tort, because in some cases that construction would result in application of RSA 507:7-e to -h in cases to which RSA 507:7-d did not apply because the underlying tort cause of action arose prior to the effective date of the Act. If the legislature had intended the provisions of section 2 of the Act relating to contribution and apportionment of damages to apply separately from the comparative fault provision in some cases, we would have expected to find express statutory language on this point. E.g., Wash.Rev. Code § 4.22.920 (1985) (Washington legislature expressly provided that provisions of Wash.Rev.Code chapter 4.22 relating to contribution would apply prior to comparative fault provisions in some cases). In the absence of such express statutory direction, we decline to adopt such a construction because it would require a division of section 2 of the Act contrary to the legislature's intent to provide a unified and comprehensive approach to this area of the law. We construe section 22 of the Act to mean that section 2 of the Act applies to "causes of action [in...