Opinion ID: 419923
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Mandate of Prior Decision

Text: 23 Under one prong of the law of the case doctrine, When an appellate court has once decided an issue, the trial court, at a later stage of the litigation, is under a duty to follow the appellate court's ruling on that issue. United States v. Cirami, 563 F.2d 26, 32 (2d Cir.1977); see 18 C. Wright, A. Miller & E. Cooper, Federal Practice and Procedure Sec. 4478, at 792-93 (1981). This doctrine applies to issues that have been decided either expressly or by necessary implication. Munro v. Post, 102 F.2d 686, 688 (2d Cir.1939); see Fogel v. Chestnutt, 668 F.2d 100, 108 (2d Cir.1981), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 103 S.Ct. 65, 74 L.Ed.2d 66 (1982). Thus if, in Doe I, we decided that there was sufficient evidence to present a jury question on liability under section 1983, that holding would be binding on the lower court. 2 24 In arguing that we did in fact hold a jury question on liability existed which precluded the district court from overturning the jury verdict, appellant relies particularly on the following language: 25 Defendant argues that any errors committed by the trial court would have been harmless because plaintiff's case was so weak that it should never have gone to the jury. We disagree. This is a complicated and difficult case. Whether the Catholic Home Bureau's omissions were the product of deliberate indifference and proximately caused any portion of Anna's abuse were questions of fact to be resolved by the jury. 26 649 F.2d at 149. 27 The Bureau characterizes this passage as mere dicta. We do not so regard it. Although the decision to remand for a new trial was based on a finding that certain jury instructions and evidentiary rulings were erroneous, the plain language quoted above indicates that the sufficiency of the evidence question was presented to and decided by the earlier panel. Furthermore, 28 U.S.C. Sec. 2111 (1976) directs appellate courts to disregard harmless error. 3 It would have been unnecessary to remand for a new trial because of erroneous jury instructions and evidentiary rulings if plaintiff's evidence on liability (including that proffered and improperly excluded) was insufficient under section 1983 as a matter of law. 4 It is therefore clear that Doe I held plaintiff presented sufficient evidence to go to the jury. Accordingly, resolution of the sufficiency issue became part of the law of the case. 28 There is some authority in other circuits which would permit the district court to enter a directed verdict or j.n.o.v. if there was substantially different evidence at the second trial. See, e.g., Otten v. Stonewall Insurance Co., 538 F.2d 210, 212 (8th Cir.1976); Johnson v. Bernard Insurance Agency, 532 F.2d 1382, 1383-84 (D.C.Cir.1976); Pyramid Life Insurance Co. v. Curry, 291 F.2d 411, 414 (8th Cir.1961). 29 We need not decide whether to adopt that precedent here, see United States v. Fernandez, 506 F.2d 1200, 1202-03 (2d Cir.1974) (trial court has no power to alter mandate of the appellate court based on new evidence), because we reject the Bureau's contention that there was substantially different evidence presented at the second trial of this case. We have examined the records of both trials and conclude the evidence at the second trial was not substantially or materially different. The core of plaintiff's case pertinent to the issue of deliberate indifference was very similar at both trials and, if anything, was probably stronger at the second trial. 5 Although the defendant Bureau called several new witnesses at the second trial, there was little, if any, material new evidence that would justify departure from the law of the case. 6 Merely cumulative evidence does not constitute such a justification. See First National Bank v. Material Service Corp., 597 F.2d 1110, 1116 (7th Cir.1979). 30