Opinion ID: 524344
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Admission of Voysey's and Verderber's Statements

Text: 59 Over WPPSS's objection, the court admitted deposition testimony of Voysey and Verderber as to their understanding at the time of negotiations how Contract 213A warranties were to work. They were responsible for the negotiation of 213A on WPPSS's behalf. WPPSS argues that the court erred in admitting the statements because they were inadmissible legal conclusions and opinions. 60 Denying WPPSS's motion in limine, the court concluded that the statements qualified as admissions under Fed.Rule Evid. 801(d)(2) and thus the legal opinion rule was not a bar. WPPSS later convinced the court that the testimony could not come in as a party admission. The court ruled finally that it would allow testimony as to what the men understood were PDM's obligations under 213A based on their beliefs at the time of the negotiations. Cf. McGary, 661 P.2d at 975 (permitting plaintiffs to testify that they understood the parking spaces at issue to be provided free of charge). It would reject testimony based on their subsequent construction of 213A. 61 The court reviewed the disputed statements in the depositions, ruling on their admissibility line by line. It permitted testimony only as to what the negotiators believed were PDM's obligations based upon their state of mind at that time. After reviewing the statements at issue, we conclude that the court did not commit reversible error in allowing the jury to hear that testimony. See Kisor v. Johns-Manville Corp., 783 F.2d 1337, 1340 (9th Cir.1986). 62 The court may have also excluded this evidence on the ground that there was no evidence that any limitations on their authority had been communicated to PDM. Regardless of limitations on their authority, Voysey and Verderber's beliefs about PDM's obligations under 213A would be the same. The existence of any actual limitations on their negotiating authority would not affect the credibility of their testimony as to their contemporaneous beliefs about PDM's obligations under 213A. Since these limitations were not communicated to PDM, the court had to balance the probative value of their testimony against any prejudice from the jury's impression that they had actual authority. We conclude that the court acted within its discretion in excluding this evidence on this basis also. See Kisor, 783 F.2d at 1340. 63