Opinion ID: 1753864
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: testimony on damages

Text: Henley's witness, Joe Courtney, testified that the exact amount of damage done to Henley's land was $115,000.00. Courtney based his assessment of the damages to the whole on his opinion as to the value of the land before and after the sand and gravel deposits. Ratliff argues that Courtney was not qualified to form an opinion relative to the value of the property and that, even if qualified, Courtney's opinion as to the damages invaded the province of the jury. The record shows that Courtney had appraised property for twenty-seven years in Clarke, Mobile and Baldwin Counties in Alabama. He has been familiar with the Henley property for six to eight years and viewed the Henley property five or six times before reaching his appraisal. Even if Courtney does not qualify as an expert, we held in Baldwin v. McClendon, 292 Ala. 43, 288 So.2d 761 (1974), that a witness who undertakes to speak in regard to the value of a piece of land need not be an expert. If he has given special attention to land values, he should be able to say, at least, what his opinion as to the value of the particular tract of land is, provided, of course, he shows a means of knowledge about the tract in question. 292 Ala. at 51, 288 So.2d at 768. See also Sanford v. Sanford, Ala., 355 So.2d 365 (1978). It was appropriate, then, for Courtney to testify as to the value of the land. Ratliff is correct in asserting that a witness may not testify that the damage to plaintiff's land was a certain sum. Instead, the witness should state the condition of the property and leave the conclusion to the jury. Alabama Great Southern R. R. Co. v. Russell, 254 Ala. 701, 48 So.2d 249 (1949). Courtney's testimony that the damages totalled $115,000.00, however, was harmless error, Rule 45, ARAP, particularly since the jury reached a different conclusion from Courtney by finding that the damages amounted only to $75,000.00.