Opinion ID: 156355
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Fraud Claims Based on Communications with Mr. Faulkner and Gas Purchase Statements

Text: 80 Conoco next argues that because its representative, Tom Faulkner, was not involved in the formation of all of the contracts, Okland's allegation that Mr. Faulkner fraudulently induced Okland's acceptance of the contracts cannot support the full amount of actual damages. It also argues that the gas purchase statements cannot support the entire actual damage award insofar as tax reimbursement amounts were included because Conoco's statements to Okland listed 0.00 as the amount of tax reimbursement paid, and, therefore, Okland could not have reasonably relied on the statements even if they were fraudulent. 81 As for the first argument, we note that Mr. Faulkner's involvement with the contracts included not only the formation of some of them, but also the later amendment of others. See, e.g., Appellant's App. Vol. I at 240, 346-67; Appellee's Supplemental App. at 77-79, 82, 84-86. More to the point, Mr. Faulkner's involvement was only part of the evidence that Okland presented to support its fraudulent inducement and deceit claims. As explained above, the jury's verdict as to those claims was based on substantial evidence. The same evidence supporting the finding of liability also supports the actual damage award, and we need not recite that evidence again. 82 As for the tax reimbursement statement claims, we note that even during part of the time Conoco was paying the tax reimbursements in full, the statements listed 0.00 as the amount of reimbursements paid, and Okland continued to rely on Conoco to pay the full tax reimbursement because there had been no change in the statements. Appellant's App. Vol. I at 191-98, Vol. III at 1006-11; Appellee's Supplemental App. at 72. Again, other evidence referred to previously in combination with this evidence supports the actual damage award. 83 Whether we decide these contentions under the strict plain error standard, which is appropriate because they were not raised below, or the conventional clearly erroneous or lack of evidence standard, see Brown v. Presbyterian Healthcare Servs., 101 F.3d 1324, 1330 (10th Cir.1996), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 117 S.Ct. 1461, 137 L.Ed.2d 564 (1997), Conoco's arguments on these points are unavailing. The entire actual damages claim need not be based on tort to support the punitive damage award. In addition, any one tort theory need not support the entire portion of the actual damages claim attributable to tort. The jury found for Okland on all of the tort and contract claims presented to it. Therefore, the actual damages claim may be supported by any of the alternative tort theories or by a combination of them, and the evidence supports the award. 84