Opinion ID: 1969001
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Nuisance Instruction

Text: Plaintiffs contend the court erred in instructing that nuisance must be intentional, that is, that defendant must have intended to interfere with the use and enjoyment of plaintiffs' property. Although plaintiffs' counsel objected to the instruction prior to the court's charge to the jury, he failed to renew the objection at the conclusion of the charge. Accordingly, the issue was not properly preserved for review on appeal. The law on this point is clear. This Court has explicitly held that an objection following jury instructions is necessary to preserve the issue for appeal. Winey v. William E. Dailey, Inc., 161 Vt. 129, 137-38, 636 A.2d 744, 749-50 (1993); State v. Pelican, 160 Vt. 536, 538, 632 A.2d 24, 26 (1993). We recently reaffirmed this rule, holding that an objection to an intent instruction is not properly preserved unless specifically renewed after the jury charge. State v. Bacon, 163 Vt. 279, 284, 658 A.2d 54, 59 (1995). Furthermore, V.R.C.P. 51(b) provides, [n]o party may assign as error the giving or the failure to give an instruction unless that party objects thereto before the jury retires to consider its verdict, stating distinctly the matter objected to and the grounds of the objection.