Opinion ID: 1809872
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Whether the trial court erred in amending the original judgment.

Text: The trial judge amended the original judgment, noting that he was only making a correction to a typographical error in the judgment. La.Code Civ. P. art.1951 allows amendments to a judgment only when the amendment is made to correct calculation errors or to alter phraseology. Thus, a judgment may be amended by the court only when the amendment takes nothing from or adds nothing to the original judgment. Villaume v. Villaume, 363 So.2d 448 (La.1978); Baptiste v. Southall, 157 La. 333, 102 So. 420 (1924). Accordingly, we must determine whether the changes in the amended judgment affected the original judgment. The original judgment, rendered on November 5, 1999, was against Elvin Stierwald and Phoenix/Travelers Insurance Company. Although the judgment names Phoenix/Travelers as the party cast in judgment, Phoenix/Travelers is, in fact, a non-existent legal entity. The record reflects that the only defendant answering plaintiff's petition as the insurer for Elvin Stierwald was Phoenix Insurance Company. Based on the record, the only defendant/insurer capable of being cast in judgment in this matter was Phoenix. Moreover, once Phoenix answered, pointing out that Travelers was improperly named, plaintiff was on notice as to the true identity of Stierwald's insurer, i.e. Phoenix. Plaintiff never sought a default judgment against Travelers and did not object to Phoenix's participation as the insurer of Stierwald. Although the court of appeal found the trial court did not err in finding both Travelers and Phoenix liable to plaintiff, we see no authority in the record which would support finding Travelers liable to plaintiff for two reasons. First, Travelers never answered plaintiffs petition. Second, Phoenix was the only insurer answering plaintiff suit and accepting liability for Stierwald. [4] Thus, we conclude the only insurer of Elvin Stierwald at the time of judgment in this matter was Phoenix. Although the record does not contain a motion for new trial to correct the name of the insurance company, on December 3, 1999, the district court rendered an amended judgment, in which Phoenix/Travelers was replaced by Phoenix Insurance Company and Travelers Insurance Company. Changing the name of a party cast in the judgment is a change of substance and not of phraseology. Davenport v. Amax Nickel, Inc., 569 So.2d 23 (La.App. 4th Cir.1990). The trial judge in this matter added the name of a party who never answered plaintiff's petition. Furthermore, the record is void of any indication that a default judgment was taken against Travelers. Although the error may have appeared obvious to the parties and the court, the change should not have been accomplished by the court's own motion, but should have been done contradictorily. Mitchell v. Zeringue, 497 So.2d 19 (La.App. 5 Cir.1986); Levy v. Stelly, 230 So.2d 774 (La.App. 4th Cir.1970). While the usual remedy of the appellate court in such a case is to vacate the amended judgment and reinstate the original judgment, the instant case will not be resolved by such a remedy. See Schexnayder v. Schexnayder, 503 So.2d 104 (La.App. 5 Cir.1987); Levy, supra . To reinstate the original judgment would be to allow a judgment to stand that holds a non-entity, i.e. Travelers/Phoenix in judgment. La. Code Civ.P. art. 2164 allows this court to render any judgment which is just, legal and proper upon the record on appeal. Howard v. Allstate Ins. Co., 520 So.2d 715, (La.1988). Phoenix answered plaintiffs lawsuit, not Travelers. Accordingly, based on the record on appeal, we deem it just, legal and proper not only to vacate the amended judgment and reinstate the original judgment, but also to revise the original judgment to delete Travelers Insurance Company, adding in its place the proper party defendant, Phoenix Insurance Company.