Opinion ID: 1655839
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Unidentified Tortfeasors.

Text: The defendants filed a motion requesting that, in the event the trial court did not permit actual joinder of the unidentified parties, it nevertheless permit the jury to compare their negligence in assessing liability. The district court refused, and we think correctly so. Defendants' argument relies heavily on Goetzman v. Wichern, 327 N.W.2d 742, 754 (Iowa 1982), in which we adopted the common-law doctrine of comparative negligence. We said the doctrine of comparative negligence assigns responsibility for damages in proportion to a party's fault in proximately causing them. Id. at 752. Based upon this fairness standard, defendants submit we should allow the comparison of fault of absent tortfeasors. In a case after Goetzman, however, we rejected a similar fairness argument raised in an attempt to modify the principle of joint and several liability. We noted that the scope of Goetzman was limited to the abrogation of contributory negligence only and was not intended to authorize the wholesale reallocation of fault in negligence cases. See Rozevink v. Faris, 342 N.W.2d 845, 849-50 (Iowa 1983). Defendants point to cases from other jurisdictions which have approved comparison of the negligence of absent tortfeasors. See, e.g., American Motorcycle Association v. Superior Court, 20 Cal.3d 578, 578 P.2d 899, 906 at n. 2, 146 Cal.Rptr. 182, 189 n. 2 (1978); Bofman v. Material Service Corp., 125 Ill.App.3d 1053, 81 Ill.Dec. 262, 267, 466 N.E.2d 1064, 1069 (1984); Brown v. Keill, 224 Kan. 195, 580 P.2d 867, 874 (1978); Paul v. N.L. Industries, Inc., 624 P.2d 68, 69-70 (Okla.1980); Bowman v. Barnes, 282 S.E.2d 613, 621 (W.Va.1981); Board of County Commissioners v. Ridenour, 623 P.2d 1174, 1191 (Wyo.1981). Section 668.4, however, adopts a more restrictive scope of parties whose negligence may be considered. Iowa Code section 668.2 provides this definition of a party: Party defined. As used in this chapter, unless otherwise required, party means any of the following: 1. A claimant. 2. A person named as defendant. 3. A person who has been released pursuant to section 668.7. 4. A third-party defendant. It is apparent that unidentified persons are not parties for purposes of applying the new joint and several liability statute. But does section 668.2 apply to a case, such as this, which is filed before July 1, 1984, the effective date of the act? The act says section 668.4 will apply to such cases, if tried after that date; but it also says section 668.4 is the only portion of the act to be given such retroactive effect. We believe that, despite this language, section 668.2, as well as section 668.4, is applicable to issues of joint and severable liability in all cases tried after July 1, 1984. By making section 668.4 retrospective, it necessarily made the definition provision, 668.2, retrospective as well. To hold that section 668.4 would apply to such cases but that the definition necessarily incorporated in it would not, would make no sense, and we do not attribute such an intent to the legislature. See Iowa Code § 4.4(3) (presumption that reasonable result of statute intended); Welp, 333 N.W.2d at 483 (manifest intent of legislature will prevail over literal import of words used); Iowa National Industrial Loan Co. v. Iowa Department of Revenue, 224 N.W.2d 437, 440 (Iowa 1974) (same). The Uniform Comparative Fault Act provides only for apportionment of the damages among parties. As used in the uniform act, a party includes third-party defendants and certain persons who have been released, but it does not include unidentified persons. See Uniform Comparative Fault Act § 2, 12 U.L.A. 46 (1985 Supp.). The comments by the commissioners expand on the reasons: [L]imitation to the parties to the action means ignoring other persons who may have been at fault with regard to the particular injury but who have not been joined as parties. This is a deliberate decision. It cannot be told with certainty whether that person was actually at fault or what fault should be attributed to him, or whether he will ever be sued, or whether the statute of limitations will run on him, etc. An attempt to settle these matters in a suit to which he is not a party would not be binding on him. Both plaintiffs and defendants will have significant incentive for joining available defendants who may be liable. The more parties joined whose fault contributed to the injury, the smaller the percentage of fault allotted to each of the other parties, whether plaintiff or the defendant. Id. The trial court was correct in ruling that the negligence of unidentified parties could not be considered in assessing percentages of liability. Intervening acts of unidentified persons may, of course, still be considered on the issue of proximate cause. We find no basis for reversal. AFFIRMED.