Opinion ID: 507764
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Powers' Testimony

Text: 9 Delta argues that Powers' testimony concerning the compensation rates for marine engineering positions that Oliveri never obtained was speculative and prejudicial. See Fed.R.Evid. 401, 403. Judge Knapp admitted the testimony, reasoning that future promotions could have a definite effect on Oliveri's lost earnings and that the question of whether Oliveri would have received the promotions was for the jury. Delta responds that Judge Knapp permitted the jury to presume a Horatio Alger scenario that could never have occurred. 10 The admissibility of evidence regarding future earning capacity is within the wide discretion of the trial judge. See O'Rourke v. Eastern Air Lines, Inc., 730 F.2d 842, 855 (2d Cir.1984); Shatkin v. McDonnell Douglas Corp., 727 F.2d 202, 207 (2d Cir.1984). Such evidence may be suspect if it is presented by expert witnesses who do not provide an adequate foundation for the assumptions they make. See Shu-Tao Lin v. McDonnell Douglas Corp., 574 F.Supp. 1407, 1411-12 (S.D.N.Y. 1983), aff'd in part, rev'd in part on other grounds, 742 F.2d 45 (2d Cir.1984); O'Rourke v. Eastern Air Lines, Inc., supra, 730 F.2d at 855; Benjamin v. Peter's Farm Condominium Owners Ass'n, 820 F.2d 640, 643 (3d Cir.1987). However, where projections of future earnings are supported by empirical evidence such as contracts or wage scales, such evidence is admissible notwithstanding that the plaintiff might not have progressed as he anticipated. In Bower v. O'Hara, 759 F.2d 1117 (3d Cir.1985), for example, the plaintiff was permitted to introduce union contracts for carpet layers in New York City on the theory that he had intended to pursue his profession in New York. Id. at 1127. The fact that, at the time of his injury, the plaintiff was not a union member nor in New York went only to the weight, not to the relevancy of the evidence. Id. See also Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp. v. Pfeifer, 462 U.S. 523, 535 & n. 14, 103 S.Ct. 2541, 2549 & n. 14, 76 L.Ed.2d 768 (1983) (raises, promotions, and career changes may be reliably demonstrated for some workers). 11 In the present case, the trial judge did not exceed his discretion in admitting Powers' testimony. First, Powers testified from his personal knowledge about compensation rates for marine engineers in the union where he had worked for fifteen years. He represented that he was familiar with contracts covering the four classes of marine engineers, and he recounted the compensation and benefits provided for in these contracts, which were in evidence. Second, the jury was given a sufficient basis on which to assess Oliveri's chances of promotion. Powers testified as to the qualifications for each position for which he offered compensation data. He also testified as to the difficulty of the various qualifying exams and the average number of years it took individuals to proceed through the ranks. Finally, the jury was clearly instructed that Powers' testimony as to compensation rates was relevant only if the jury found that Oliveri would have been promoted. 1 Since the jury was presented with first-hand testimony regarding Oliveri's chances for promotion and the earnings he could be expected to receive, and was instructed that it could reject the promotion theory altogether, admission of Powers' testimony was proper. 2