Opinion ID: 852959
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: The Admissibility of the Settlement Agreement

Text: When the City filed its First Amended Complaint, the City attached a settlement agreement allegedly entered into by Smith & Wesson, one of the manufacturer-defendants. The trial court granted the defendant's motion to strike the agreement from the complaint and the Court of Appeals affirmed that ruling. The trial court pointed out that Smith & Wesson is still a party to this litigation, and found the City had made no showing that the agreement was ever entered into. The trial court also found the agreement to be irrelevant and in violation of Rule of Evidence 408 as a purported agreement of settlement and compromise. The City claims the settlement agreement is relevant because it shows the feasibility of some of the protections the gun manufactures could employ to lessen the harm. Smith & Wesson does not address this on appeal. We think the agreement was properly ordered stricken from the complaint but conclude that it is premature to address the admissibility of this purported settlement agreement at this stage. No party included a copy of the Motion to Strike in its Appendix, and no party refers to any factual affidavit either supporting or opposing the motion to strike, so at this stage of the proceedings, we accept the City's factual assertions as true. Assuming this agreement was entered into, it forms no essential part of the complaint. It is at most evidence supporting one allegation of the complaint. On its face, there may be issues precluding the admission of the agreement into evidence, at least for some purposes. But whether any part of the agreement is admissible in evidence, and for what purpose, is a matter to be addressed at trial.