Opinion ID: 2097439
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: The District Court Properly Affirmed the County Court's Damages Award.

Text: Nebraska Diamond assigns as error the district court's affirmance of the county court's calculations of the amount of commissions actually owed Schinnerer. Nebraska Diamond claims that the calculations are too speculative for an award of damages. In a case brought under the Wage Payment Act, we stated that damages need not be proved with mathematical certainty; however, damages cannot be established by evidence which is speculative and conjectural. Gagne v. Severa, 259 Neb. 884, 612 N.W.2d 500 (2000). In this case, the county court held a bench trial to determine the amount of commissions owed to Schinnerer under the definition of commissions in the Wage Payment Act. At trial, Schinnerer introduced the actual invoices of the 38 accounts for which she claimed commission. Nebraska Diamond claimed that 19 of the 38 invoices were canceled prior to January 13, 2005, the date Schinnerer filed suit. However, Nebraska Diamond's store manager testified that the remaining 19 contracts were not canceled as of January 13. As to the 19 invoices that Nebraska Diamond alleged were canceled, Schinnerer presented evidence at trial that Nebraska Diamond collected and retained money on 17 of those contracts. The evidence showed that on 7 of the alleged canceled accounts, the full purchase price was recovered and that on the 10 remaining contracts, Nebraska Diamond retained some of the purchase price on those accounts. Therefore, following the bench trial, the county court entered its order finding that Schinnerer was entitled to a full commission on the 19 orders on file when she was terminated as a sales associate for Nebraska Diamond and on the 7 alleged canceled accounts for which the full purchase price was ultimately recovered. Of the 10 remaining contracts that Nebraska Diamond alleged were canceled, the court concluded that Schinnerer was due commissions on the amount recovered and retained by Nebraska Diamond. Based on these findings, the county court found that Schinnerer was due $4,878.15 in commissions. The district court affirmed the award. The record shows that the county court's findings were not based on speculation and conjecture, but, rather, were supported by competent evidence presented at trial and were neither arbitrary, capricious, nor unreasonable. The district court reviewed the county court's decision for error on the record pursuant to Neb. Rev.Stat. § 25-2733(1) (Cum.Supp.2006) and issued its eight-page opinion. Upon our review, we conclude that the district court's affirmance of the award was not in error.