CLEVELAND (Legal Newsline) - A woman’s accusations that jury misconduct led to an unfair ruling in her car accident claim prevailed as the appeals court reversed a previous denial of her motion for a new trial.
Judges Anita Laster Mays, Frank D. Celebrezze, Jr., and Kathleen Ann Keough sat on the panel that reversed the ruling on April 2 against Laila Al Jawary in the Ohio Court of Appeals’ Eighth Appellate District.
Jawary filed the appeal following the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas’ denial for her motion in her case against Ashton E. Underwood, Erie Insurance Company and John Does. She requested the new trial, claiming she was denied non-economic damages for her broken neck, because of jury misconduct.
The judges ruled that her argument does have weight when it comes to a conversation the jury allegedly had with the trial court after the verdict was read. The trial court allegedly told the jury, “Folks, I’d like to speak to you for just a minute. You can come back here,” according to the opinion.
After the conversation, the trial court told Jawary’s legal team that two jurors, a doctor and a nurse, said while deliberating that a rear-end car crash, like this one (in which Underwood rear-ended Jawary) wouldn’t lead to the fractures she claimed. Interestingly enough, the lower court judge previously told the jury not to lean on any medical expertise when deciding on a verdict.
While Underwood said there’s no proof of Jawary’s claim, Judge Laster wrote, “The record does not reflect the trial court’s consideration under Civ. R. 59(A)(2) of whether the juror misconduct occurred and, if so, whether the moving party’s substantial rights were materially affected. Thus, Jawary’s argument on this issue has merit.”
Jawary’s lawsuit with Underwood was filed after Underwood allegedly rear-ended her in February 2015. She also sued Erie Insurance Company and John Does. While a lower court sided with Jawary on past medical damages, awarding her $10,590, she wasn’t awarded future economic damages or past and future non-economic damages, leading to her motion for a new trial, which was denied.
The judges went on to point out that Jawary was granted $10,590 for medical bills but wasn’t awarded anything for past and future pain and suffering, even though Jawary said her injuries altered her quality of life. Those claims were backed through medical evidence and witnesses. Jawary said she’s convinced the juror’s alleged misconduct is what caused her to not get awarded the maximum amount.
“The award of medical expenses only, in spite of the evidence of pain and suffering, supports Jawary’s argument that the damages award was inadequate and may have resulted from prejudice due to the alleged. Juror misconduct,” wrote Judge Laster.