Teply v. Lincoln, No. 20542

• Court: Idaho Court of Appeals
• Writing for the Court: WALTERS
• Citation: 125 Idaho 773,874 P.2d 584
• Docket Number: No. 20542
• Decision Date: 29 March 1994
• Parties: Vonda TEPLY, Louis Teply, and Sondra Bryant, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Douglas Ivan LINCOLN, Defendant-Respondent.

Page 584

874 P.2d 584 125 Idaho 773 Vonda TEPLY, Louis Teply, and Sondra Bryant, Plaintiffs-Appellants,
v.
Douglas Ivan LINCOLN, Defendant-Respondent. No. 20542. Court of Appeals of Idaho. March 29, 1994. Petition for Review Denied June 22, 1994.

Holland & Hart, Boise, for plaintiffs-appellants. Walter Bithell, argued.

Cantrill, Skinner, Sullivan & King, Boise, for defendant-respondent. Robert D. Lewis, argued.

WALTERS, Chief Judge.

This is an appeal from a judgment entered on a jury verdict finding a motorist not liable for injuries and property damage sustained when his automobile slid across the highway and collided with an oncoming vehicle. The dispositive issue is whether a driver is legally excused from compliance with the safety statues relating to driving on the right-hand side of the highway, where icy road conditions unexpectedly cause him to lose control of his vehicle and slide across the centerline of the highway. Adhering to the decision of the Idaho Supreme Court in Haakonstad v. Hoff, 94 Idaho 300, 486 P.2d 1013 (1971), we hold the driver is not excused, and that the jury's verdict representing a contrary finding in this case must therefore be set aside.

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125 Idaho 774

Facts and Procedural Background.

For purposes of this appeal the following facts are not disputed. While driving southbound on Highway 55 during an October snowfall, Douglas Lincoln lost control of his pickup truck as it slid across the centerline of the highway and collided with a northbound vehicle that was occupied by Louis Teply, his wife Vonda Teply, and their daughter Sondra Bryant (hereinafter referred to collectively as "the Teplys"). The Teplys brought this negligence action against Lincoln, seeking recovery for personal injuries and for the damage to their automobile.

At trial, Lincoln testified that on the morning of the accident he left Lewiston, Idaho, travelling south. His two-wheel drive pickup had new tires, was in excellent condition, and had its bed weighted down. The roads from Lewiston to New Meadows had been fairly clear. At New Meadows, Lincoln turned onto Highway 55 and proceeded south at a constant speed of between forty and fifty miles per hour. Suddenly and without warning, the back-end of his pickup slid left, toward the centerline. Lincoln did not brake but tried, unsuccessfully, to steer into the slide and to keep the direction of his pickup straight on the road ahead of him. However, the pickup slid at an angle, crossed the centerline, and collided with the Teplys' vehicle. Witnesses at the scene later testified that a light snow had fallen and the road beneath was slick. There was no evidence of negligence on the part of anyone in the Teplys' vehicle.

At the close of the evidence, the trial court instructed the jury on the relevant highway safety statutes, including the statutes requiring that vehicles be driven upon the right-hand side of the highway, I.C. § 49-630, and that drivers approaching from opposite directions pass each other to the right, I.C. § 49-631. Over the Teplys' objection, the court additionally instructed the jury as follows:

A violation of a statute is negligence unless compliance with the statute was impossible or something over which the party had no control placed him in a position of violation of a statute or an emergency not of the party's own making caused him to fail to obey a statute. ¹

Following its deliberations, the jury returned a verdict finding Lincoln not negligent. ² Further, although the Teplys had presented evidence of their losses, the jury did not determine the amount of the Teplys' damages, having found that Lincoln was not negligent. The Teplys moved under I.R.C.P. 50(b) for a judgment n.o.v., asserting that the undisputed evidence established Lincoln's violation, and that there was not sufficient evidence to support a finding that the violation was excused. The Teplys alternatively moved for a new trial under I.R.C.P. 59(a)(7), on the ground that the "excuse" instruction was an incorrect statement of Idaho law. The district court denied both motions and entered judgment for Lincoln. The Teplys appealed, contending the district court erred in denying their motions.

Standards of Review

The legal standards governing a motion for judgment n.o.v. are well established. In making such a motion, the moving party necessarily admits the truth of the opposing party's evidence. I.R.C.P. 50(b); Hudson v. Cobbs, 118 Idaho 474, 797 P.2d 1322 (1990); Quick v. Crane, 111 Idaho 759, 727 P.2d 1187 (1986). If, after viewing the evidence in this manner the trial court concludes that there is substantial evidence to support the jury's verdict, the motion must be denied. Hudson, 118 Idaho at 478, 797 P.2d at 1326. Conversely, the moving party is entitled to a

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[125 Idaho 775] judgment n.o.v. when there is no substantial evidence to support the verdict. Brand S Corp. v. King, 102 Idaho 731, 639 P.2d 429 (1981). Whether the evidence before the court constitutes substantial evidence is purely a question of law. Accordingly, the appellate court exercises free review without special deference to the determination by the trial court. Hudson, 118 Idaho at 478, 797 P.2d at 1326; Quick, 111 Idaho at 764, 727 P.2d at...