Court Opinion

ID: 9531685
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 04:13:53.874041+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:28:33.998187
License: Public Domain

COMPTON, Justice,
concurring.
I agree with the Per Curiam Opinion. I write separately to state what procedure I believe should be used when a civil action for punitive, as well as compensatory, damages proceeds to jury trial. The problem is obvious. On the one hand, evidence of the defendant’s ability to respond in damages can improperly influence the jury’s determination of liability. Accordingly, such evidence, and particularly evidence of insurance, is generally inadmissible at trial because of the danger of its misuse. Poulin v. Zartman, 548 P.2d 1299, 1300 (Alaska 1976); Alaska R.Evid. 411. On the other hand, when punitive damages are at issue, evidence of the defendant’s wealth, including any insurance, is relevant to determining what amount should be awarded so as to fulfill the purposes of punishment and deterrence. Thus, in an action in which punitive damages may be awarded, there is a strong reason not to present evidence of the defendant’s wealth to the jury and, at the same time, there is a need to present such evidence. Justice would be best served if both of these conflicting interests could be accommodated.
*902I believe the solution to this dilemma is as obvious as the problem is. Civil Rule 42(b) specifically states that “[t]he court, in furtherance of convenience or to avoid prejudice, ... may order a separate trial of any ... issue.. .. ” This Rule was designed to provide flexibility in handling trials, and its use in cases such as this would easily resolve the problem presented. The issue of the proper amount of punitive damages to award can simply be bifurcated from the other issues in the case. In this fashion, the liability issues could be determined without the possibility of the jury’s decision being tainted by evidence of the defendant’s wealth. If the jury decides. in the first phase of the trial that an award of punitive damages is appropriate, a second phase of the trial, using the same jury, could then be held to determine the proper amount of the award. At this separate phase, the needed evidence of the defendant’s wealth, including evidence of any insurance coverage, could be presented. The minimal additional costs and delay entailed in using this procedure would clearly be outweighed by the benefits it would confer in ensuring that the interests of justice are fulfilled.
The benefits of bifurcating the issues in this fashion so clearly outweigh any possible burdens, I am of the opinion that it would be an abuse of discretion for the court not to follow this procedure in this or similar cases.