Kunkel v. Motor Sport, Inc.
| Decision Date | 02 June 2004 |
| Docket Number | No. CIV. 03-1116(JAF).,CIV. 03-1116(JAF). |
| Citation | 349 F.Supp.2d 198 |
| Parties | Michael E. KUNKEL (A/K/A Michael E. Young) and Maria I. Campbell Garcia, Plaintiffs, v. MOTOR SPORT; INC.; Nauti Sports, Inc.; Jose Arturo Fossas Martinez; Guillermo de Lemos, Belinda Negron, and the Legal Conjugal Community Partnership constituted between both spouses; Hunter Marine Corporation; US Spars, Inc.; Mapfre Group Praico (F/K/A Puerto Rican American Insurance Company); New Hampshire Insurance Company; Valley Forge Insurance Company, and other unknown insurance companies, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Puerto Rico |
Raul M. Arias-Marxuach, McConnell Valdes, San Juan, PR, for U.S. Spars, Inc., Counter Claimant.
Enrique A. Baez-Godinez, Law Office of Enrique A. Baez Godinez, San Juan, PR, Juan J. Martinez-Rodriguez, Calvesbert Law Offices PSC, San Juan, PR, for Maria I. Campbell-Garcia, Michael E. Kunkel, Plaintiffs.
Ian P. Carvajal-Zarabozo, Saldana & Carvajal, San Juan, PR, Charles DeMier-LeBlanc, De Corral & De Mier, San Juan, PR, for Puerto Rican American Insurance Company, Defendant.
Francisco E. Colon-Ramirez, Colon, Colon & Martinez, San Juan, PR, for Hunter Marine Corporation, New Hampshire Insurance Company, Counter Claimants.
Rafael A. Ojeda-Diez, Ojeda & Ojeda, San Juan, PR, for Conjugal Partnership De-Lemos-Doe, Nauti Sports, Inc., Guillermo De-Lemos, Motor Sport, Inc., Counter Claimants.
Manuel Sosa-Baez, Saldana & Carvajal, San Juan, PR, for Motor Sport, Inc., Puerto Rican American Insurance Company, Guillermo De-Lemos, Jose Arturo Fossas-Martinez, Defendants.
Plaintiffs, Michael E. Young (F/K/A Michael E. Kunkel) ("Plaintiff Young") and Maria I. Campbell Garcia ("Plaintiff Campbell"), bring this action against Motor Sport, Inc.; Nauti Sports, Inc.; Jose Arturo Fossas Martinez; Guillermo de Lemos; Belinda Negron, Guillermo de Lemos' wife, and the Legal Conjugal Community Partnership constituted between both spouses; Hunter Marine Corporation; US Spars, Inc.; Mapfre Grupo Praico (F/K/A Puerto Rican American Insurance Company); New Hampshire Insurance Company; Valley Forge Insurance Company; and other unknown insurance companies, (collectively, "Defendants"), alleging various personal injuries, breach of warranties, failure to warn, and liability under 26 P.R. LAWS ANN. § 2003 (1997 & Supp.2000). Docket Document No. 1. Plaintiffs seek compensatory, punitive, and non-pecuniary damages, and attorney's fees. Id. We have admiralty and maritime jurisdiction. 28 U.S.C. § 1333. (1993 & Supp.2003). Defendants have filed counterclaims against Plaintiff Campbell. Docket Document Nos. 11, 12, 13, 35.
All Defendants except U.S. Spars move for partial summary judgment. Docket Document Nos. 19, Reply Tendered on June 17, 2003, Response Tendered on October 17, 2003. Plaintiffs oppose the motion. Docket Document Nos. 34, 58, Sur-reply Tendered on August 1, 2003, Supplemental Sur-reply Tendered on August 12, 2003. Upon careful review of the pleadings, the submitted evidence, and applicable case law, the court grants in part and denies in part Defendants' motion for partial summary judgment.
Unless otherwise indicated, we derive the following factual summary from the complaint and the statements of facts submitted by the parties in their summary judgment and opposition motions. Docket Document Nos. 1, 19, 34, 58.
Plaintiffs Campbell and Young are citizens of the United States residing in Fajardo, Puerto Rico. Plaintiffs have been married to each other since March 15, 1997.
Defendant Motor Sport, Inc., ("Defendant Motor Sport") was incorporated pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and is engaged in the business of selling motorcycles, jet skis, motorboats, and sailboats. Defendant Motor Sport is the authorized dealer for Hunter sailboats in Puerto Rico.
Defendant Nauti Sport, Inc., ("Defendant Nauti Sport") was incorporated pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and has its principal place of business in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.
Defendant José Arturo Fossas Martínez ("Defendant Fossas") is a citizen of the United States, and is a shareholder, a director, and the president of Motor Sport, Inc.
Defendant Guillermo de Lemos ("Defendant de Lemos") is a citizen of the United States, and is a salesperson, broker, and employee of Defendant Motor Sport.
Defendant Belinda Negrón is married to Defendant de Lemos and, together with him, they constitute a legal conjugal community partnership under the laws of Puerto Rico.
Defendant Hunter Marine Corporation ("Defendant Hunter") is a corporation with its principal place of business in Alachua, Florida, and is the manufacturer and builder of Hunter sailboats.
Defendant U.S. Spars, Inc., ("Defendant U.S. Spars") was incorporated pursuant to the laws of the State of Florida and is engaged in the business of selling boating products. Defendant U.S. Spars has its principal place of business in Alachua, Florida.
Defendant Mapfre Group Praico ("Defendant Mapfre") is an insurance company and has its principal place of business in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Defendant Mapfre issued several insurance policies to Defendants Motor Sport and Nauti Sport.
Defendant New Hampshire Insurance Company provides insurance coverage for Defendant Hunter.
Defendant Valley Forge Insurance Company provides insurance coverage for Defendant U.S. Spars.
On or about October 2001, Plaintiff Campbell considered purchasing a sailboat. Plaintiff Campbell saw an advertisement in El Nuevo Día newspaper where Defendant Motor Sport was offering to sell a 1998 Hunter 340 ("the vessel"). Plaintiffs contacted Defendant Motor Sport to inquire about the vessel. Defendant de Lemos informed Plaintiffs that the vessel was a lightly used "demo" boat that had not suffered damages by reason of its prior use.
During the negotiations, Plaintiffs learned from a third party that the vessel's mast had a problem. Plaintiffs raised the concern with Defendant de Lemos, who advised them that the problem was with the mast step compression post. This, Defendant de Lemos claimed, was a Hunter manufacturing defect that had been remedied by Motor Sport, the Hunter dealer, as a modification or a repair covered by Hunter's warranty.
Thereafter, Plaintiff Campbell hired a marine surveyor, Edgardo J. Jiménez ("Jiménez"), to survey the vessel and estimate its fair market value. On October 25, 2001, Jiménez surveyed the vessel and prepared a report describing the vessel as "exhibiting a general as new condition." Jiménez also reported that the vessel was in a "re-commissioning process" and that the "vessel is going to be warranted by the dealer as a new vessel."
Relying on Jiménez's report and Defendant Motor Sport's representations that the vessel was in good condition, Plaintiff Campbell purchased the vessel on November 1, 2001. Defendant Motor Sport treated Plaintiff Campbell as a "first-use purchaser" and issued a Hunter Marine Limited Warranty ("the warranty").
After Plaintiff Campbell purchased the vessel, Defendant de Lemos and Plaintiffs launched the vessel and performed a sea trial. Thereafter, Plaintiff Campbell invested five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) in purchasing and installing additional electronic and other necessary equipment in the vessel, and documented it with the U.S. Coast Guard. Plaintiffs named the vessel "SIRENA." Plaintiffs allege that the vessel was previously named "YOKAHU" and had been extensively used by Defendant Motor Sport and/or Defendant Fossas. Docket Document No. 1.
Once the vessel was berthed at its wet slip at Marina Puerto del Rey in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, Plaintiff Young noticed that there was a difference between the spacing where the diamond diagonal shrouds cross each other on the vessel's port side and on the starboard side. Plaintiff Campbell hired Quino Sánchez ("Sánchez"), a local sailboat rigger, to tune the vessel's standing rigging.
On November 29, 2001, Sánchez inspected the vessel's standing rigging and discovered three stress cracks in the mast close to the upper forestay fitting. Plaintiffs had not used the vessel since the sea trial on November 3, 2001.
Acting on Plaintiffs' behalf, Sánchez notified Julian Crisp ("Crisp"), a U.S. Spars employee, regarding the cracks he had discovered. Crisp instructed Sánchez to send him information pertaining to the problem. Sánchez then instructed Campbell not to move the vessel until the cracks were duly evaluated.
Through de Lemos, Plaintiff Campbell reported to Defendant Motor Sport regarding the stress cracks and the irregular rigging. Defendants Motor Sport and de Lemos sent Luis Val-Lloberas ("Val-Lloberas"), a local sailboat rigger, to inspect the vessel's mast. Val-Lloberas observed the cracks and took several digital photographs of the vessel's mast.
The following day, Defendant de Lemos traveled to Florida to present Val-Lloberas' findings to Defendant Hunter and Crisp. On the same day, Defendant de Lemos called Plaintiff Campbell to inform her that he had consulted with Defendant Hunter and Crisp. Plaintiffs allege that Defendant de Lemos made the following representations: (1) the stress cracks were superficial; (2) there was no need to repair the mast; and (3) there would be no problem in using the vessel. Id.
Based on these representations, Plaintiffs took a cruising vacation to the British Virgin Islands from December 20, 2001, to January 2, 2002, during which no incidents concerning the vessel took place.
After the British Virgin Islands vacation, Plaintiff Young noticed several cracks surrounding the vessel's keel. Plaintiffs allege that they reported the cracks to Defendant Motor Sport, and that Defendant de Lemos explained that Defendant Fossas had required a modification of the keel, but that the modification was not a problem.
On February 14, 2002, Plaintiff Young embarked on a trip to the...
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