Title: Lambert v. Higgins

State: florida

Issuer: Florida Supreme Court

Document:

63 So. 2d 631 (1953)
LAMBERT
v.
HIGGINS.

Supreme Court of Florida, Division B.
February 27, 1953.
Rehearing Denied March 31, 1953.
Baxter & Baxter, Fort Lauderdale, and Samuel R. Dighton, Orlando, for appellant.
J.B. Patterson, Fort Lauderdale, for appellee.
DREW, Justice.
Auberta B. Higgins sued Dewey Lambert for injuries arising out of an automobile accident. She charged that she was his guest at the time of the accident and that his gross negligence or willful and wanton misconduct in the operation of the automobile was the proximate cause of her injuries. Section 320.59, F.S.A. The trial resulted in a verdict in favor of the plaintiff, a final judgment was entered pursuant to the verdict and this appeal was taken therefrom.
Appellant poses two questions for our consideration. The first question goes to the sufficiency of the evidence to show gross negligence or willful and wanton misconduct of the defendant. We find in the record substantial, competent evidence to support the verdict of the jury. Under such circumstances it is elemental that we have no right to interfere with it.
The second question raised here relates to questions propounded to prospective jurors by plaintiff's counsel relating to their possible connection with insurance companies and an episode that occurred *632 during the trial with reference to a statement signed by the plaintiff shortly after the accident. We shall briefly discuss these two points.
The record shows that during the examination of the prospective jurors, the following took place on the examination by plaintiff's counsel of prospective juror Fellows:
On the examination of other prospective jurors, at some point in the examination, plaintiff's counsel asked the question: "Did you ever do any adjusting work?"
Defendant's counsel very strenuously argues that such conduct was clearly erroneous, injurious to his client's cause and constituted reversible error. We have most carefully reviewed the proceedings of this trial and we conclude that no reversible error has been made to appear in this connection. This situation arose in the examination of the jury on the voir dire. There is a very delicate balance to be maintained in cases of this kind to protect both the interest of the plaintiff and defendant. Ordinarily, the trial Judge is in the best position to do this and, unless there is a clear abuse of his authority shown, we are not inclined to interfere with the result of the trial on this ground. We approve the following language taken from the annotation in 4 A.L.R.2d, pages 765-766:
Finally, we hold that the examination of the jury did not go beyond the limits prescribed in Ryan v. Noble, 95 Fla. 830, 116 So. 766, and similar cases.
*633 Defendant's counsel, when cross-examining plaintiff, introduced in evidence a statement signed by plaintiff shortly after the accident and while plaintiff was in the hospital. On cross-examination the plaintiff admitted the signature was hers, but said she had no recollection of having signed it and said the statement contained untrue statements. Plaintiff's counsel, on rebuttal, presented a witness who testified as follows:
Following this testimony a motion was made to declare a mistrial on the ground that the voluntary reference to "the insurance adjuster Norton" was prejudicial error. The court denied the motion but promptly instructed the jury as follows:
The above language is almost exactly what the lower court told the jury in Rosenberg v. Coman, 134 Fla. 768, 184 So. 238, and concerning which we said, quoting from Wall v. Little, 102 Fla. 1015, 136 So. 676, 677:
We, therefore, hold that the lower court acted promptly and correctly and, if such conduct was improper, his charge correct ed such irregularity.
In the preparation of the briefs counsel for both parties have in many instances failed to observe our Rule 20, requiring that when opinions of this Court are cited the page and number of both the Florida Reports and Southern Reporter should be given. It would be of great help to the Court if this Rule were more closely followed. There is another matter that we wish to call to counsel's attention. In incorporating in the record in this Court the reporter's transcript of proceedings in the lower court, the original page numbers are changed to conform to the transcript here, without changing the index page numbers. This results in considerable confusion in our examination of the evidence.
We point out these matters  not in a critical sense  but in order for the bar to know that a closer observation of these matters would be of great assistance to us in the disposition of the causes before us.
Affirmed.
HOBSON, C.J., and THOMAS and ROBERTS, JJ., concur.