Opinion ID: 489290
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Propriety of a New Trial.

Text: 18 The issue before us in the instant appeal is whether either Rule 63 or its negative inference require a new trial in the circumstances of this case. As noted above, when the parties were last before this court, we considered a previous denial of Home Placement's new trial motion and held (1) that our earlier clarification order, which left the determination of whether to grant a new trial to the sound discretion of the district court, had become the law of the case; (2) that Rule 63 did not apply in light of the parties' stipulation, see supra p. 4; and (3) that even if Rule 63 were to apply, under the unique circumstances of this case, there would be no abuse of discretion in not granting a new trial on damages. Home Placement II, 739 F.2d at 677-78. 19 Of the three grounds supporting our original holding that a new trial on damages is unnecessary, the most difficult hurdle for Home Placement to overcome is our ruling that the earlier clarification order had become the law of the case. See id. at 677. As Home Placement concedes in its brief, it is enormously difficult for a litigant to convince a court to take yet another look at an issue that has already been decided on two prior occasions. Home Placement argues, however, that a widely recognized exception to the law of the case doctrine should apply in this instance. Here, according to Home Placement, there has been a substantial change in the law subsequent to the first decision and, therefore, the original holding should not be considered the law of the case. See, e.g., Page v. St. Louis Southwestern Railway Co., 349 F.2d 820, 821 (5th Cir.1965). 20 Home Placement would have us rule that we are not bound by the law of the case doctrine because, in the wake of Townsend, this circuit's interpretation of Rule 63 has fundamentally changed. According to this argument, Rule 63 is no longer discretionary, as we stated in Home Placement II, but rather mandates a new trial whenever it is applicable. This contention, however, is fundamentally flawed because Townsend had no substantive effect on our interpretation of Rule 63 proper. Rather, it merely recognized the negative inference that can be drawn from the rule for those cases in which a trial judge becomes disabled prior to rendering a decision. Nothing in Townsend departed from our earlier interpretation of Rule 63 and the rule, where it expressly applies, continues to provide that a determination of whether to grant a new trial must be left to the discretion of the trial court. We conclude, therefore, contrary to Home Placement's contention, that Townsend did not mark a substantial change in the law regarding this circuit's interpretation of Rule 63 and, accordingly, that there is no reason for us to disturb the twice issued new trial ruling that long ago became, and continues to be, the law of the case. 21 Were this not enough, we stand by our earlier decision that the parties' stipulation nullifies the operation of Rule 63, see Home Placement II, 739 F.2d at 677-78, and we reaffirm our conclusion that, even if Rule 63 applies here, the district court did not abuse its discretion by refusing to order a new trial given the facts of this case. Id. at 678. Nor do we accept Home Placement's novel argument that the instant case is directly governed by our negative inference language in Townsend simply because Judge Boyle never reached the question of damages and, hence, never entered findings of fact or conclusions of law on that particular point. This case does not fall within the narrow mandatory new trial category delineated in Townsend because, unlike the original judge in the Townsend case, Judge Boyle did file findings of fact and conclusions of law that disposed of the case before he became disabled by our ruling on appeal. The issue of the course to be followed by his successor arose only because we reversed his finding of no liability under the antitrust laws and exercised our inherent power to suggest assignment to another factfinder on remand for independent review of the largely stipulated damage evidence. See Home Placement I, 682 F.2d at 281. As we stated at that time, it would be easier all around ... to have the further proceedings before another trier. Id. 22 We have found nothing to suggest that this procedure was improper given the circumstances of this case. Indeed, other courts of appeal have sanctioned this procedure in cases similar to our own by remanding to a different district judge for findings on an existing record without mandating a new trial. See, e.g., Golf City, Inc. v. Wilson Sporting Goods Co., 555 F.2d 426 (5th Cir.1977); Group Association Plans, Inc. v. Colquhoun, 466 F.2d 469, 471-72 (D.C.Cir.1972). Furthermore, we believe that our order was justified because the motivation underlying our action, at least in part, was to accord Home Placement the benefit of a fresh, impartial review of the damage evidence without subjecting it to a lengthy and costly court proceeding. We cannot imagine that a court of appeals wishing to remand a case for a determination of damages must always order a new trial before a successor judge whenever the original judge, for whatever reason, is no longer available to hear the case. Such a requirement would be especially repugnant when a retrial would be extremely time consuming, when the credibility of witnesses' testimony is not central to the determination to be made on remand, and when an independent and impartial review of the largely stipulated evidence contained in a written record would suffice. 5 23 Upon reversing a determination of liability adverse to the plaintiff, an appellate court must be free to balance the costs and benefits of remanding the case to the same judge who initially erred in ruling against the deserving plaintiff, but who at the same time is obviously the person most familiar with the facts relevant to a calculation of damages. Cf. O'Shea v. United States, 491 F.2d 774, 779 (1st Cir.1974) (explaining the range of considerations influencing a decision to remand to a different judge for criminal sentencing). If, in such a case, the appellate court believes that the balance tips in favor of remanding the case to a different judge for whatever reason, and if the litigants would not be prejudiced by a determination on the existing record, 6 then a new trial is not required and the appellate court may leave the decision as to whether to grant a new trial to the sound discretion of the district court. Nothing in the language of Rule 63 prohibits an appellate court from proceeding in this manner and, further, the rationale animating our decision in Townsend does not require a new trial in this situation because the case has progressed past the point of decision by the original trial judge. 24