Opinion ID: 1275751
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Severance of Co-Defendants

Text: Plaintiff Bowman and defendant Barnes claim the trial court erred in requiring separate trials of plaintiff's claims against the defendant Railroad and defendant Barnes. Plaintiff filed suit against the two defendants in a single complaint, alleging that the death of plaintiff's decedent was proximately caused by the negligence of either or both defendants. Plaintiff and defendant Barnes assert that where the comparative negligence of the plaintiff is at issue, ordering separate trials for defendants in an action arising out of a single accident violates the comparative negligence principles of Bradley v. Appalachian Power Co., W.Va., 256 S.E.2d 879 (1979). They maintain that a unitary trial is necessary under Bradley in order to determine the comparative negligence of the plaintiff in regard to all of the defendants. The Railroad contends that under Rule 42(c) of the West Virginia Rules of Civil Procedure, the right to order separate trials rests within the sound discretion of the trial court, and that such discretion was properly exercised here. Our Rule 42(c), which is similar to Rule 42(b), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, provides: Separate trials The court, in furtherance of convenience or to avoid prejudice, or when separate trials will be conducive to expedition and economy, may order a separate trial of any claim, cross-claim, counterclaim, or third-party claim, or of any separate issue or of any number of claims, cross-claims, counterclaims, third-party claims, or issues, always preserving inviolate the right of trial by jury as declared by Article III, Section 13 of the West Virginia Constitution or as given by a statute of this State. It is generally acknowledged that a single trial lessens the delay, expense and inconvenience involved in separate trials, and the courts have emphasized that separate trials should not be ordered unless such a disposition is clearly necessary. 5 Moore's Federal Practice § 42.03 (1981). As Moore points out, the matter ordinarily lies within the discretion of the trial judge. [6] Our research has not disclosed any case where a court has had occasion to discuss the impact of comparative negligence on the procedural question of ordering separate trials as to joint tortfeasors. Dean Prosser, a leading tort commentator, has pointed out some of the problems in comparative negligence cases when less than all joint tortfeasors are included in the litigation. In Comparative Negligence, 51 Mich. L.Rev. 465, 503-4 (1953), he states: Complications arise when apportionment involves multiple parties. Where, for example, the automobiles of two negligent drivers collide and injure the plaintiff, who is a bystander or a passenger in one of the cars, it is obvious that no complete and substantial justice can be done to the situation by any division of the damages between the plaintiff and one driver alone, in an action to which only those two are parties. There remain the problems of evaluation of the contributing fault of one who is not a party to the action, of the second suit against him in which the first is not res adjudicata and a new jury may come to a very different conclusion, and finally of contribution between the joint tortfeasors. The only completely satisfactory method of dealing with the situation is to bring all the parties into court in a single action, to determine the damages sustained by each, and to require that each bear a proportion of the total loss according to his fault. [7] (Emphasis added) The comparative negligence rule set forth in Bradley, supra, is designed to ascertain a plaintiff's degree of contributory negligence as it relates to all of the defendants. As Prosser points out, this can be effectively accomplished only if all defendants are tried in a unitary action. It is for this reason that we stressed in Bradley the case of Haynes v. City of Nitro, W.Va., 240 S.E.2d 544 (1977), which established an inchoate right of contribution between joint tortfeasors, thereby permitting a defendant to implead a joint tortfeasor under Rule 14(a), R.C.P. The main purpose for our liberal rules on joinder of parties and claims [8] is to enable parties to settle all matters in one action, which prevents a multiplicity of suits and reduces litigation, delay and expense. Cf. State ex rel. Bank of Ripley v. Thompson, 149 W.Va. 183, 139 S.E.2d 267 (1964). Both justice and judicial economy are served by this policy. [9] Even absent the compelling overlay of the comparative negligence principle, the federal courts have expressed the view that separate trials should not be ordered. In Russell v. City Ice and Fuel Co., 539 F.2d 1318 (4th Cir. 1976), the Fourth Circuit held the district court had abused its discretion in ordering separate trials. The plaintiff had sued two joint tortfeasors, one of whom cross claimed the other on an indemnity claim. The district court ordered that the three claims be separately tried. In reversing, the court stated: [S]uch bifurcation of closely related cases clearly is wasteful of judicial resources and carries with it a high potential for inconsistent results, and the inconsistencies can compound miscarriages of justice. 539 F.2d at 1320. See also Franchi Construction Co. v. Combined Insurance Company, 580 F.2d 1 (1st Cir. 1978); Richardson v. Communications Workers, 530 F.2d 126 (8th Cir. 1976), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 824, 97 S.Ct. 77, 50 L.Ed.2d 86; United States Air Lines, Inc. v. Wiener, 286 F.2d 302 (9th Cir. 1961), cert. denied, 366 U.S. 924, 81 S.Ct. 1352, 6 L.Ed.2d 384. There may be those rare instances where, because of the complexity of the issues, a court may be warranted in ordering separate trials as to joint tortfeasors. However, the case before us certainly does not present such an occasion. Therefore, we conclude that Rule 42(c), R.C.P., which permits separate trials of multiple defendants, must be considered in light of the general policy of our joinder rules, which are designed to promote consolidation of issues and parties in a single trial to save expense and encourage judicial economy. Such rule should also be interpreted with regard to our comparative negligence doctrine, which is designed to compare plaintiff's contributory negligence to the negligence of all parties involved in the accident and litigation. Applying this rule to the present case, it was error for the trial court to sever the defendant Barnes from the case.