Case Title: Verchot v. General Motors Corp.

Citation: 812 So. 2d 296

Docket Number: 1992300

State: alabama

Court: Alabama Supreme Court

Date: 2001-05-25T00:00:00Z

Document:
812 So. 2d 296 (2001)
Dorothy VERCHOT et al.
v.
GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION et al.
1992300.

Supreme Court of Alabama.
May 25, 2001.
Rehearing Denied August 31, 2001.
*298 Robert L. Austin, Birmingham, for appellants.
Robert R. Baugh and Kerry P. McInerney of Sirote & Permutt, P.C., Birmingham, for appellees General Motors Corporation, Jim Burke Automotive, Inc., and Tom Williams Buick, Inc.
Daniel R. Klasing and Sue E. Williamson of Strong, Klasing & Williamson, P.C., Birmingham, for appellee Quick Oil Change, Inc.
HARWOOD, Justice.
Dorothy Verchot and persons who were passengers in her motor vehicle on February 22, 1997, sued General Motors Corporation, Jim Burke Automotive, Inc., Tom Williams Buick, Inc., and Quick Oil Change, Inc., seeking compensatory and punitive damages under the Alabama Extended Manufacturer's Liability Doctrine ("AEMLD"). The trial court entered summary *299 judgments for the defendants. The plaintiffs appealed.
The plaintiffs were involved in an automobile accident on February 22, 1997. On February 19, 1999, they sued, under the AEMLD, alleging that the master cylinder in Verchot's 1991 Buick Park Avenue automobile had contained a defect that caused her brakes to fail and thereby caused the plaintiffs to be involved in an accident. During discovery, two mechanics, Jim Moore and Mike Hill, gave deposition testimony. Both mechanics had inspected Verchot's automobile eight days after the accident. The plaintiffs made the defendants aware that the automobile and master cylinder were no longer available for inspection because Verchot's insurance company had sold the automobile for salvage, but they did provide the defendants with photographs of the automobile that the plaintiffs' counsel had made on the occasion of the inspection by the two mechanics and which showed, among other things, the brake pedal completely depressed to the floorboard. The defendants thereafter moved for a summary judgment. Three separate motions were filed, one by the General Motors Corporation; one by Jim Burke Automotive, Inc., and Tom Williams Buick, Inc.; and one by Quick Oil Change, Inc. Each of the four defendants argued that it was entitled to a summary judgment on the basis that the plaintiffs had allowed the automobile to be disposed of and the plaintiffs could not, without the automobile, prove by substantial evidence that the master cylinder had been defective. Jim Burke Automotive, Inc., and Tom Williams Buick, Inc., also argued that the plaintiffs had shown no causal connection to support a claim against those defendants in their respective capacities as seller (Jim Burke Automotive had sold the vehicle to Verchot on October 18, 1990) and as seller of a replacement master cylinder (Tom Williams Buick had sold the defendant Quick Oil a replacement master cylinder, which Quick Oil had installed on the automobile almost two years before the accident). After receiving evidentiary submissions and holding a hearing, the trial court entered a summary judgment for each of the defendants, without stating a rationale.
Our review of a summary judgment is de novo:
*300 Hobson v. American Cast Iron Pipe Co., 690 So. 2d 341, 344 (Ala.1997).
Although the plaintiffs' brief states the issue before this Court in general terms, the arguments they present devolve to the contention that the summary judgments must be reversed because, even if the trial court correctly determined that the plaintiffs improperly disposed of evidence crucial to their claims, the plaintiffs also presented additional and independent substantial evidence that created a genuine issue of material fact as to each element of their claims.[1]
Regarding the relative burdens of proof to be considered in determining whether a party has met the requirements for a summary judgment, we have stated:
Ex parte General Motors Corp., 769 So. 2d 903, 909 (Ala.1999)(quoting Justice Houston's special concurrence in Berner v. Caldwell, 543 So. 2d 686, at 691 (Ala.1989); concluding that Justice Houston's special concurrence in Berner accurately stated the law; and overruling the main opinion in Berner to the extent that it overruled Lawson State Community College v. First Continental Leasing Corp., 529 So. 2d 926 (Ala.1988)).
We have also discussed at length what must be shown to proceed *301 with a claim under the AEMLD in the similar context of an alleged defect that caused brake failure:
Brooks v. Colonial Chevrolet-Buick, Inc., 579 So. 2d 1328, 1331-32 (Ala.1991)(emphasis added in first paragraph).
The defendants argue that the summary judgments were proper because, they say, "by Plaintiffs' failure to preserve key evidence, GM, Jim Burke, ... Tom Williams [and Quick Oil Change] ... [were] severely prejudiced because they [were] deprived of the ability to establish a *302 defense to Plaintiffs' claims."[2] In Capitol Chevrolet, Inc. v. Smedley, 614 So. 2d 439 (Ala.1993), the insurer, one of the plaintiffs in an action alleging an automobile design defect, had the vehicle destroyed 11 months before filing a complaint. We held that the failure of the trial court to dismiss the case was an abuse of discretion, because "[a] reasonable person could have concluded ... that [the insurer] might sue" and that "[t]he stark result [was] that relevant evidence was irreparably lost by the actions of [the insurer]." 614 So. 2d  at 443.
The facts of this case are very similar to those of Smedley. In this case, the plaintiffs allowed the automobile that was the basis of their claim to be disposed of. In both cases, the disposal occurred after the plaintiffs' experts had had an opportunity to examine the automobile. Moreover, in this case, the plaintiffs' attorney accompanied the two mechanics to inspect the automobile eight days after the accident. From that fact, it is reasonable to infer that the plaintiffs contemplated filing a lawsuit. Also, in both cases, the defendants were only given photographs of the subject automobiles. Finally, in both cases, the defendants offered testimony of an engineer to illustrate that in order to defend the action it was necessary for the defendants to have the automobiles available for inspection. In the present case, General Motors attached to its motion for a summary judgment the affidavit of David Buist, a staff project engineer for General Motors, which stated in pertinent part:
C.R. at 113. Based upon our holding in Smedley, we likewise might conclude that the trial court properly entered the summary judgments for the defendants on the basis that Verchot's automobile was unavailable for inspection. However, we recognize our decision in Smith v. Atkinson, 771 So. 2d 429, 434 (Ala.2000), in which we stated, "In Alabama, a products-liability claim relating to a defective automobile is properly disposed of on a motion for summary judgment if the automobile in question is not available and the plaintiff has no other means of proving the alleged defect." (Emphasis added.) Therefore, we address the plaintiffs' argument concerning the sufficiency of their evidence as it relates to their "other means of proving the alleged defect."
The plaintiffs argue that they presented the trial court direct evidence of a defect in the master cylinder, i.e., their own testimony concerning how the accident occurred and testimony about the circumstances of a prior similar brake failure they say the automobile had experienced; *303 photographs of the brake pedal completely depressed to the floorboard of the automobile; and testimony by the mechanics that the master cylinder was engaged and the wheels were rolling freely before they removed the master cylinder and that the wheels locked when the same master cylinder was reinstalled. The plaintiffs contend that this constituted substantial evidence that entitled them to present the issue of defectiveness to a jury. See § 12-21-12, Ala.Code 1975.
To determine whether this evidence is sufficient to warrant sending this case to a jury, we must consider what is required to prove a prima facie case under the AEMLD. See Brooks v. Colonial Chevrolet-Buick, Inc., supra. In Brooks, while this Court held that expert testimony was not always required in AEMLD cases, we recognized that "ordinarily, expert testimony is required because of the complex and technical nature of the commodity." Id., 579 So. 2d  at 1332 (quoting Sears, Roebuck & Co. v. Haven Hills Farm, Inc., 395 So. 2d 991, 995 (Ala.1981)). Moreover, in Brooks, which also concerned an alleged brake failure, this Court stated:
579 So. 2d  at 1333.
Both of the mechanics who inspected the automobile for the plaintiffs stated in deposition that they could not say that an internal defect in the master cylinder was the only factor that could have caused the brakes in Verchot's automobile to fail as they did. They acknowledged other factors, such as excessive heat, leakage of brake fluid, and contamination of brake fluid, as possible causes. The affidavit of David Buist, the staff project engineer for General Motors, provided additional reasons that could have caused the brakes to fail, reasons that would not have depended upon an internal defect in the master cylinder. They included
C.R. at 113.
Thus, both the plaintiffs' mechanics and the defendants' engineer agreed that other events could have caused the brakes in Verchot's automobile to fail. "Proof of an accident and injury alone is insufficient to establish fault under the AEMLD." Brooks, 579 So. 2d  at 1332. Under these circumstances, we conclude that the plaintiffs' evidence indicating that the accident could have been attributable to an internal defect in the master-cylinder is necessarily speculative and nonselective and does not constitute substantial evidence indicating that a master cylinder defect caused the accident. See, e.g., Taylor v. General Motors Corp., 707 So. 2d 198 (Ala.1997). Such speculative evidence does not create a genuine issue of material fact as to whether the brakes failed because of a defect.
The plaintiffs also offered over *304 200 "1241 Reports"[3] of allegedly similar occurrences of brake failure that had been reported to General Motors. The plaintiffs attached these reports as an exhibit to their motion in opposition to the defendants' motion for a summary judgment. Generally, the admission of such reports is within the trial court's discretion. See General Motors Corp. v. Johnston, 592 So. 2d 1054 (Ala.1992) (trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting 251 reports of similar occurrences of engine stalling and idling). The defendants argued to the trial judge, and now they argue to this Court, that these reports did not possess the requisite reliability to be considered as evidence to rebut their motions for summary judgment. The defendants directed the trial court's attention, and now they direct our attention, to Uitts v. General Motors Corp., 411 F. Supp. 1380 (E.D.Pa. 1974), aff'd, 513 F.2d 626 (3d Cir.1975), in support of their position. In Uitts, the federal district court held that 1241 Reports produced by the defendant General Motors in response to a discovery order were properly excluded from evidence when the plaintiff sought to introduce them to prove causation. Concerning the admissibility of the reports, that court stated:
Id., 411 F. Supp.  at 1382-83. The United States District Court in Guild v. General Motors Corp., supra, relied on Uitts in connection with that court's consideration of a similar offering of 1241 Reports. The court in Guild held that "[n]one of the 1241 reports may be received at trial as evidence of a defect because they constitute inadmissible hearsay." 53 F. Supp. 2d  at 368.
We consider the federal court's decision in Uitts as persuasive authority on the issue whether the trial court in this case erred in entering the summary judgments for the defendants. While the trial court did not indicate what reasoning it used when it granted the defendants' motions for summary judgment, we conclude that the trial court could have properly refused to consider the 1241 Reports as evidence creating a genuine issue of material fact as to the plaintiffs' AEMLD claims.
Progressive Specialty Ins. Co. v. Hammonds, 551 So. 2d 333, 337 (Ala.1989)(citing Smith v. Equifax Servs., Inc., 537 So. 2d 463, 465 (Ala.1988)). See also Cove Properties, Inc. v. Walter Trent Marina, Inc., 702 So. 2d 472 (Ala.Civ.App.1997). Accordingly, the summary judgments are affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
MOORE, C.J., and SEE, BROWN, and STUART, JJ., concur.
[1]  The defendants Jim Burke Automotive, Inc., Tom Williams Buick, Inc., and Quick Oil Change, Inc., have moved to dismiss this appeal as it relates to them. They argue that they should be dismissed because their names do not appear in the notice of appeal and in certain designations in the plaintiffs' brief. We conclude that these three defendants are proper parties to this appeal. While the plaintiffs' brief is confusing in that it refers to a singular "defendant" in some contexts, and to plural "defendants" in others, and often refers to "General Motors" as the only defendant, we conclude that the plaintiffs intended to appeal the summary judgments entered for all four defendants. The plaintiffs' notice of appeal states that they are appealing from the order "granting motions for summary judgments [for] Defendants." Also, the notice of appeal describes the plaintiffs as "Dorothy Verchot, et al." and describes the defendants as "General Motors, et al."
[2]  In regard to the availability of the automobile for inspection, the plaintiffs responded to interrogatories by stating:

"The vehicle was in the custody of Sadisco located on Highway 78 in Irondale, Alabama being held on behalf of State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company. To the best of Plaintiffs' knowledge, information, and belief, the vehicle was disposed of...."
R. at 72.
[3]  "1241 Reports are complaints received by [General Motors] from consumers concerning the failure of one of its products." Guild v. General Motors Corp., 53 F. Supp. 2d 363, 368 (W.D.N.Y.1999).