Case ID: f2d_897/html/0794-01.html
Source: Caselaw Access Project
Author: {"author": "FRANK J. POLOZOLA, District Judge:", "license": "Public Domain", "url": "https://static.case.law/"}
Date Created: 2024-08-24T03:29:51.129683

Andrew C. SMITH, Plaintiff, v. AMERICAN MEDICAL SYSTEMS, INC., Defendant-Appellee, v. HUMANA HOSPITAL CORPORATION, INC., Defendant-Appellant.
    No. 88-5527.
    United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.
    April 4, 1990.
    Richard Francis and Jerry A. Gibson, Plunkett, Gibson & Allen, San Antonio, Tex., for defendant-appellant.
    John Milano, Jr., Thornton, Summers, Biechlin, Dunham & Brown, San Antonio, Tex., for defendant-appellee.
    Before WILLIAMS and GARWOOD, Circuit Judges, and POLOZOLA, District Judge.
    
      
       District Judge of the Middle District of Louisiana, sitting by designation.
    
   FRANK J. POLOZOLA, District Judge:

In our original opinion, we certified the following question to the Texas Supreme Court:

Under Texas law, is a seller of a product entitled to indemnification from the manufacturer for attorney’s fees incurred by seller during the litigation where the manufacturer settles the case with the plaintiff before a judicial determination of the liability of the parties is made?

In response to our certification, the Texas Supreme Court has ruled as follows:

In this cause, there has been no judicial finding that American Medical Systems was negligent or that the prosthesis was unreasonably dangerous. In other words, there has been no judicial determination — or admission — that American Medical Systems was, or could have been legally liable to Smith in any way. Unless and until there is such a determination, Humana Hospital’s claim for indemnity is premature.

For the reasons stated previously, our answer to the certified question is “no”.

Therefore, the opinion of the district court is AFFIRMED. 
      
      . Smith v. American Medical Systems, Inc., 876 F.2d 434 (5th Cir.1989).
     
      
      . Humana Hospital Corp. v. American Medical Systems, Inc., 785 S.W.2d 144 (Texas 1990).
     
      
      . Id. at 145.