Opinion ID: 688767
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Apportionment of Settlement Damages

Text: 43 The district court held that [C]alifornia law requires Showa as a potential joint tortfeasor to share equally in the cost of settling the Campos family litigation. The district court cited California Food Services Corp. v. Great American Insurance Co., 130 Cal.App.3d 892, 901, 182 Cal.Rptr. 67, 73 (1982), to support this proposition. California law requires no such holding. The equitable indemnity rule enables a concurrent tortfeasor to obtain partial indemnity from other concurrent tortfeasors on a comparative fault basis. GMC, 1 F.3d at 866 (citing American Motorcycle, 20 Cal.3d at 599, 146 Cal.Rptr. at 195, 578 P.2d at 912). The decision relied upon by the district court, California Food Services, only equally apportioned the damages at issue because a contract between the parties in that case required each party to bear responsibility for one-half of any loss under the policy. California Food Services, 130 Cal.App.3d at 901, 182 Cal.Rptr. at 73. Accordingly, should Showa eventually be required to indemnify National Union for a portion of the settlement, the district court must specifically determine each parties' respective fault in order to apportion the damages.