Opinion ID: 1711177
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Law in Florida

Text: This Court's seminal decision in Cloud v. Fallis, 110 So.2d 669 (Fla.1959), governs the broad discretion of a trial judge to grant a new trial when the verdict is contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. In Cloud, the plaintiff sought to recover damages for his child's death, allegedly caused by the defendant's negligent operation of his car. The defendant pleaded that the parents were negligent in allowing the child to play in the street. The jury returned a verdict for the defendant. The plaintiff moved for a new trial, and the trial judge granted the motion, finding that the verdict of the jury was contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. The trial judge noted in his order that at the time of the accident the defendant was traveling at an excessive speed through an area known by the defendant to have many children in it and that the jury had held the child's parents to a greater degree of responsibility for the care of the child than the law required. On appeal, the district court noted that some appellate courts applied the broad discretion doctrine and other appellate courts applied the substantial, competent evidence doctrine. The district court opted to follow the broad discretion doctrine and it affirmed the trial court's order of a new trial. The district court's decision was appealed and this Court determined that the issue was whether the so-called `broad discretion' rule or the so-called `substantial, competent evidence' rule should be applied in this state. Cloud, 110 So.2d at 671. This Court upheld the district court's decision, stating,  We adhere to the early rule placing in trial courts broad discretion of such firmness that it would not be disturbed except on clear showing of abuse. ... Id. at 672 (emphasis added). The Cloud Court explained the trial judge's duty in considering a motion for a new trial based on the verdict being against the manifest weight of the evidence: When a motion for new trial is made it is directed to the sound, broad discretion of the trial judge, who because of his contact with the trial and his observation of the behavior of those upon whose testimony the finding of fact must be based is better positioned than any other one person fully to comprehend the processes by which the ultimate decision of the triers of fact, the jurors, is reached. When the judge, who must be presumed to have drawn on his talents, his knowledge and his experience to keep the search for the truth in a proper channel, concludes that the verdict is against the manifest weight of the evidence, it is his duty to grant a new trial, and he should always do that if the jury has been deceived as to the force and credibility of the evidence or has been influenced by considerations outside the record. Id. at 673 (citations omitted)(emphasis added). Regarding the review of orders granting new trial on these grounds, this Court stated that [i]nasmuch as such motions are granted in the exercise of a sound, broad discretion the ruling should not be disturbed in the absence of a clear showing that it has been abused. Id. This Court also explained that the party challenging the order granting a new trial cannot content himself simply to submit the record and expect the order to be upset if the reviewing body finds, in cold type without the benefit of any of the circumstances known to the trial judge, and never to be known to the appellate court, that there appears to be some substantial competent evidence supporting the verdict. Id. The district court in the present case applied the principle of the substantial, competent evidence doctrine set forth in Grand Assembly of Lily White Security Benefit Ass'n v. New Amsterdam Casualty Co., 102 So.2d 842 (Fla. 2d DCA 1958). This case was decided by the Second District Court of Appeal eleven months prior to this Court's decision in Cloud. In Grand Assembly, the district court, in attempting to define manifest weight of the evidence, determined that manifest means clearly evident, clear, plain, indisputable. 102 So.2d at 846 (quoting Schneiderman v. Interstate Transit Lines, 331 Ill.App. 143, 72 N.E.2d 705, 706 (1947), aff'd, 401 Ill. 172, 81 N.E.2d 861 (1948)). The district court in Grand Assembly applied this definition to its review of the order granting a new trial and concluded that there is substantial competent evidence to support the verdict so that it should stand and that the trial court should not substitute its conclusions based on the evidence for the views and conclusions of the jury. Id. This Court has consistently followed the principles set forth in Cloud. In Castlewood International Corp. v. LaFleur, 322 So.2d 520, 522 (Fla.1975), we reiterated that a grant of a new trial is of such firmness that it should not be disturbed except upon a clear showing of abuse. This Court also stated that an appellant seeking to overturn such a ruling has a heavy burden and any abuse of discretion by the trial court must be clear from the record. In Wackenhut Corp. v. Canty, 359 So.2d 430 (Fla.1978), the jury awarded the plaintiff compensatory and punitive damages. The trial judge found the punitive damage award to be so grossly excessive as to shock the judicial conscience and ordered a new trial as to damages in lieu of a remittitur that had been rejected by the plaintiff. The order did not contain a finding that the verdict was contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. The order also did not explain what about the verdict shocked the judge's conscience. On appeal, the district court reversed, finding substantial, competent evidence to support the jury's verdict. On review, this Court found that the district court's decision clearly conflicted with Cloud and its rejection of the substantial, competent evidence rule. This Court noted that, to facilitate intelligent review, the order must contain reasons that produce the need for a new trial and also must either demonstrate the impropriety of the verdict or show that the jury was influenced by considerations outside the record. Because the order in Wackenhut Corp. did not explain why the verdict was excessive, this Court upheld the district court's decision. In Baptist Memorial Hospital, Inc. v. Bell, 384 So.2d 145 (Fla.1980), a verdict was returned in favor of the plaintiff and the trial judge granted a motion for a new trial, expressly finding that the verdict was grossly excessive and contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. The district court of appeal reversed, concluding that the verdict was neither excessive nor contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. This Court quashed the district court decision because it failed to properly apply the broad discretion rule granted to trial courts in Cloud. We emphasized that, in reviewing the trial court's order, the appellate court should apply the reasonableness test to determine whether the trial judge abused his discretion. If reasonable men could differ as to the propriety of the action taken by the trial court, then the action is not unreasonable and there can be no finding of an abuse of discretion. Id. at 146. In Smith v. Brown, 525 So.2d 868 (Fla. 1988), we emphasized that the reasonableness standard applied to the trial court's determination that a jury verdict was against the manifest weight of the evidence. Justice Grimes, writing for the Court, succinctly explained the roles of the trial and appellate courts: [T]he trial judge should refrain from acting as an additional juror. Laskey v. Smith, 239 So.2d 13 (Fla.1970). Nevertheless, the trial judge can and should grant a new trial if the manifest weight of the evidence is contrary to the verdict. Haendel v. Paterno, 388 So.2d 235 (Fla. 5th DCA 1980). In making this decision, the trial judge must necessarily consider the credibility of the witnesses along with the weight of all of the other evidence. Ford v. Robinson, 403 So.2d 1379 (Fla. 4th DCA 1981). The trial judge should only intervene when the manifest weight of the evidence dictates such action. However, when a new trial is ordered, the abuse of discretion test becomes applicable on appellate review. The mere showing that there was evidence in the record to support the jury verdict does not demonstrate an abuse of discretion. Id. at 870. In E.R. Squibb and Sons, Inc. v. Farnes, 697 So.2d 825 (Fla.1997), we recently repeated that the abuse of discretion standard and the reasonableness test apply to the review of an order for new trial. We noted that, although there was an evidentiary basis for the jury verdict, there also was extensive evidentiary support for the trial court's ruling, and concluded that reasonable persons could agree with the trial court. Id. at 827-28. To summarize, this Court has repeatedly held that the trial judge has broad discretion in ruling on a motion for a new trial on the grounds that the verdict is contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. A trial judge has the responsibility to draw on his [or her] talents, his [or her] knowledge, and his [or her] experience to keep the search for the truth in a proper channel, and the trial judge should always grant a motion for a new trial when the jury has been deceived as to the force and credibility of the evidence or has been influenced by considerations outside the record. Cloud, 110 So.2d at 673. The trial judge's discretion permits the grant of a new trial although it is not clear, obvious, and indisputable that the jury was wrong. When a trial judge grants the motion for a new trial, he or she must articulate the reasons for the new trial in the order. When reviewing the order granting a new trial, an appellate court must recognize the broad discretionary authority of the trial judge and apply the reasonableness test to determine whether the trial judge committed an abuse of discretion. If an appellate court determines that reasonable persons could differ as to the propriety of the action taken by the trial court, there can be no finding of an abuse of discretion. The fact that there may be substantial, competent evidence in the record to support the jury verdict does not necessarily demonstrate that the trial judge abused his or her discretion. A trial judge may order a new trial on the grounds that the verdict is inadequate or excessive, against the manifest weight of the evidence, or both. In Cloud, the new trial was ordered because the verdict was contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. In Wackenhut, the new trial was ordered because the trial judge found the punitive damages award to be excessive and the plaintiff rejected a remittitur. In Baptist Memorial Hospital, the new trial was based on the verdict being excessive and contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. Regarding inadequate or excessive verdicts, this ground is a corollary of the ground asserting that the verdict is contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. A new trial may be ordered on the grounds that the verdict is excessive or inadequate when (1) the verdict shocks the judicial conscience or (2) the jury has been unduly influenced by passion or prejudice. The procedure under section 768.74, Florida Statutes (1997), for remittitur and additur apply only upon the proper motion of a party. Regardless of whether a new trial was ordered because the verdict was excessive or inadequate or was contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence, the appellate court must employ the reasonableness test to determine whether the trial judge abused his or her discretion.