Opinion ID: 2147333
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 17

Heading: Testimony Regarding Action to Dissolve Corporation

Text: Bellino's expert witnesses testified that McGrath North should have considered and advised Bellino of other alternatives, including the possibility of a dissolution action. McGrath North asserts that the district court erroneously delegated its duty to the jury to decide whether the uncontested facts formed a basis for Bellino to bring a dissolution action under the dissolution statute, Neb.Rev.Stat. § 21-20,162 (Cum.Supp.2006). The record does not support this assertion. The jury was not instructed to determine whether a basis existed for dissolution but whether Bellino had proved by the greater weight of the evidence (1) the existence of an attorney-client relationship, (2) negligence by McGrath North, (3) proximate cause, and (4) damages. McGrath North also claims the district court erred in allowing Bellino's witnesses to discuss whether a sufficient basis existed for judicial dissolution of Lottery, since that determination was a question of law for the district court. It relies on Sports Courts of Omaha v. Brower, 248 Neb. 272, 534 N.W.2d 317 (1995), in which this court held that expert testimony concerning a question of law is generally not admissible in evidence. In Sports Courts of Omaha, a law professor opined that the actions taken by an attorney on behalf of his client with regard to certain stock constituted a disposition of collateral under the Uniform Commercial Code. We found that because there was no dispute as to the actions of the attorney, whether those actions constituted a disposition of collateral as contemplated in the code was a matter of statutory interpretation, which was a question of law. In the present case, Bellino's experts did not interpret the judicial dissolution statute. Friedman explained generally what it means to dissolve a corporation. She opined that a lawyer of ordinary skill and prudence would have researched the law, including the statutes, and she concluded that dissolving the corporation would have been a viable option for Bellino. Neither did Moore attempt to interpret Nebraska law. He stated that when the owners of a small corporation cannot agree, a dissolution action is a procedure available to them whereby their interests could be divided. He opined that a dissolution action was an option for Bellino. In Boyle v. Welsh, 256 Neb. 118, 589 N.W.2d 118 (1999), we held that expert testimony in an action for legal malpractice is normally required to establish an attorney's standard of conduct in a particular circumstance and whether the attorney's conduct was in conformity therewith. The required standard of conduct is that the attorney exercise such skill, diligence, and knowledge as that commonly possessed by attorneys acting in similar circumstances. Id. Although this general standard is established by law, the question of what an attorney's specific conduct should be in a particular case and whether an attorney's conduct fell below that specific standard is a question of fact. Id. To determine how the attorney should have acted in a given case, the jury will often need expert testimony describing what law was applicable to the client's situation. A `jury cannot rationally apply a general statement of the standard of care unless it is aware' of what the common attorney would have done in similar circumstances. Id. at 124, 589 N.W.2d at 124. Testimony about the relevant law is often essential to assist the jury in determining what knowledge is commonly possessed by lawyers acting in similar circumstances and whether the attorney exercised common skill and diligence in ascertaining the legal options available to his or her client. Attorneys represent their clients in legal matters; thus, in an action for professional negligence, the law is ingrained in the canvas upon which the picture of the attorney-client relationship is painted for the jury. A trial court's ruling in receiving or excluding an expert's testimony which is otherwise relevant will be reversed only when there has been an abuse of discretion. Epp v. Lauby, 271 Neb. 640, 715 N.W.2d 501 (2006). We conclude that the district court did not abuse its discretion in permitting Bellino's expert witnesses to testify that a dissolution action was a viable option.