Opinion ID: 2451781
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: responses to interrogatories

Text: Piercy also contends that the circuit court erred in not allowing him to introduce certain responses to interrogatories by Wal-Mart. Piercy's Interrogatory 5 asked whether any persons had slipped on mats at the Wal-Mart store in question over the past five years and Interrogatory 11 asked if any persons had fallen on mats at any Wal-Mart stores. Wal-Mart responded to both interrogatories by objecting to them as overly broad, burdensome, irrelevant, and not likely to lead to admissible evidence. Piercy sought to present these objections to the jury, and Wal-Mart objected on relevancy grounds. The circuit court sustained Wal-Mart's objection. We observe no abuse of discretion in the court's ruling. Piercy would have us believe that Wal-Mart's objections to these interrogatories was an admission of sorts but cites us to no authority supporting his position. We do not agree. Wal-Mart was perfectly within its rights to object to any interrogatory. If the objection was unreasonable or without basis, then Piercy's remedy was to move to compel a response. Piercy is correct that, under Ark.R.Civ.P. 33, answers to interrogatories may be used to the extent permitted by the rules of evidence. However, objections to interrogatories are not answers. The circuit court correctly sustained Wal-Mart's objection at trial. Piercy further attempted to introduce into evidence answers to other interrogatories such as answers to Interrogatories 19 and 20 relating to the positioning and cleaning of the mats at the store entrance. Answers to interrogatories are hearsay and generally are inadmissible as part of a party's case-in-chief. See Hunter v. McDaniel Bros. Constr. Co., 274 Ark. 178, 623 S.W.2d 196 (1981). Nevertheless, such answers may be admissible to impeach the answering party. Here, however, no attempt was made by Piercy to impeach Wal-Mart personnel at trial. The circuit court correctly refused to allow the answers to Piercy's interrogatories into evidence.