Court Opinion

ID: 9516495
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-06 23:43:34.251349+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:40:22.738689
License: Public Domain

SABERS, Justice
(concurring in part and dissenting in part).
I agree that as a matter of law, instructions on damages for breach of fiduciary duty should not have been submitted to the jury.
However, the damages for breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty are so intertwined that the breach of contract claim should be resubmitted to the jury on both liability and damages, subject to the pled defenses of settlement and accord and satisfaction. “Where ... the damages awarded are inseparable, or closely connected with other issues, a partial reversal on the question of damages is not permissible.” 5 C.J.S. Appeal & Error § 928 (1993). In my view, we should not affirm liability in a vacuum and exclude, by appellate fiat, evidence of settlement, accord and satisfaction, loss of business reputation, or claims of intoxication or shaking while conducting tests. Our remand for a new trial on breach of contract should include liability and damages and not unduly tie the hands of the trial court, the parties and their attorneys or the jury.