Opinion ID: 889317
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 9

Heading: Issue Seven: Did the District Court abuse its discretion when it prohibited the testimony of Dr. Lee?

Text: ¶ 72 Dr. Lee was hired by St. Paul to conduct a reconstruction of the accident scene. Dr. Lee did so and the results of his reconstruction, as contained in the claims file, were admitted during trial. St. Paul also sought to have Dr. Lee provide direct testimony at trial. The District Court denied the testimony. The District Court noted that the issue in the UTPA case is what St. Paul knew at the time it was making its decision to deny Peterson's claim. With regard to Dr. Lee, the question was what information did St. Paul have from him, and when did St. Paul have it. Thus, the District Court concluded that Dr. Lee's direct testimony would be either cumulative or irrelevant since all the information available to St. Paul from Dr. Lee had already been put into evidence through the claims file. ¶ 73 St. Paul argues the denial of Dr. Lee's testimony constitutes an abuse of discretion. We disagree. Dr. Lee's testimony would have been either irrelevant or cumulative as the only relevant evidence from Dr. Lee in this case is the information he provided to St. Paul during the claims adjusting process. His direct testimony at trial would not assist the jury in deliberating on the UTPA claims. Therefore, we conclude the District Court did not abuse its discretion in excluding his testimony.