Opinion ID: 2585588
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Failure to Reweigh the Evidence

Text: The granting of a new trial is a matter of trial court discretion and, as with all discretionary matters, will not be disturbed on appeal except by a showing of abuse of that discretion. Cott v. Peppermint Twist Mgt. Co., 253 Kan. 452, 458, 856 P.2d 906 (1993). Whether the district court applied the correct standard when ruling on the issue is a question of law. An appellate court's standard of review on questions of law is unlimited. Hamilton v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 263 Kan. 875, 879, 953 P.2d 1027 (1998). The memorandum decision and order on the District's motion for new trial states: In considering Rossville's motion for new trial, the Court must resolve all facts and inferences in favor of Dougan. If reasonable minds could reach different conclusions, the Court must uphold the verdict. [Citation omitted.] Contrary to arguments of Rossville, this Court cannot weigh the evidence to determine if the verdict is contrary to the conclusion which the court would reach if acting as a sole trier of fact. A new trial may only be granted when the Court finds a ground under K.S.A. 60-259(a). The provision of K.S.A. 60-259(a) Fourth which applies to this discussion is that the court may grant a new trial if the verdict, report, or decision is in whole or in part contrary to the evidence. In Mettee v. Urban Renewal Agency, 219 Kan. 165, 166, 547 P.2d 356 (1976), the trial court ruled the jury's damage award in a condemnation proceeding was grossly excessive under the credible evidence. The landowner had expert witnesses testify that the value of the land was $46,785 and $42,000, while the agency's experts stated the value was $9,375 and $10,500. The jury accepted the $42,000 figure as the land's value. The trial court refused to accept the jury's verdict and instead opined that the fair market value of the land was $28,000. The landowner appealed the court's order for a remittitur or new trial. The Mettee court noted that K.S.A. 60-259(a) permits the granting of a new trial where the verdict is in whole or in part contrary to the evidence; it reversed the trial court because the verdict was not contrary to the evidence and was within the evidence offered to establish the value of the land. The Mettee court held that there was no ground under K.S.A. 60-259(a) for awarding a new trial where the jury's award was within the scope of the evidence. Therefore, the trial court lacked jurisdiction to order a new trial. 219 Kan. at 168-70. In a case involving inadequate, rather than excessive, damages this court, in reviewing the important policy reasons for allowing juries to determine damage awards, noted: This is not to say however that there is no judicial control over jury verdicts in personal injury cases where the verdict is manifestly excessive or inadequate. Smith v. Newell, 210 Kan. 114, 118, 499 P.2d 1112 (1972). The appellate courts have the power to issue a remittitur where a verdict shocks the conscience of the appellate courts. See, e.g., Barnes v. St. Francis Hospital & School of Nursing, 211 Kan. 315, Syl. ¶ 9, 507 P.2d 288 (1973). Here, the jury's verdict was within the evidence presented at trial and was not such that it shocked the conscience of the court. Therefore, the trial court was correct in concluding that it could not weigh the evidence to determine if the verdict was contrary to the conclusion which the court would reach if acting as a sole trier of fact.