Court Opinion

ID: 9746813
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-27 14:39:11.453779+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:25:17.108918
License: Public Domain

BROSKY, Judge,
concurring:
I share the view of the majority but strongly believe the application of the Benefit Rule is susceptible to discernable guidelines aiding the trier of fact in its determination.1 I believe that our recognition of a cause of action for wrongful birth of a “normal” child requires us to recognize the existence of damages that accompany the tort claim.2 I do not hold with the rationale that these damages are too speculative.3 I agree with the court in Custodio v. Bauer, 251 Cal.App.2d 303, 59 Cal.Rptr. 463, 27 A.L.R.3d 884 (1967), that the birth of a healthy child does not necessarily mean the plaintiffs have not suffered an injury compensable by damages.
It appears to me that our analysis must begin with the well established principle of tort law that:
*366[i]t is fundamental to our common law system that one may seek redress for every substantial wrong. The best statement of the rule is that a wrongdoer is responsible for the natural and proximate consequence of his misconduct.
Niederman v. Brodsky, 436 Pa. 401, 403, 261 A.2d 84, 85 (1970). Thus, under ordinary tort principles, damages must be awarded with the intent to right a wrong.
Damages generally should be awarded within bounded areas, for it is true that an unlimited scope of damages would bring into being speculative claims, which our society could not afford. This public policy was best articulated by Justice Andrews in his landmark dissent in Palsgraf v. Long Island R. R., 248 N.Y. 339, 162 N.E. 99 (1928), wherein he stated the policy behind our court’s decision only to award damages which are proximately related to an injury:
What we mean by the word “proximate” is that, because of convenience, of public policy, of a rough sense of justice, the law arbitrarily declines to trace a series of events beyond a certain point. This is not logic. It is practical politics.
Id. at 352, 162 N.E. at 103.
One rationale holds that the damages in wrongful birth actions, though they are proximately caused by the defendant’s acts, must be limited to the damages directly related to the cost of pregnancy because damages resulting from rearing the child are too speculative. However, clearly the damages in the instant case are no more speculative than those found in wrongful death cases.
Notably, in our Supreme Court’s opinion of Sinn v. Burd, 486 Pa. 146, 404 A.2d 672 (1979), damages were awarded for the wrongful death of a child struck by an automobile and, also, for the mental trauma suffered by a bystander. I cannot see how the damages sought in the instant case are more speculative than those generally brought in wrongful death cases, damages sought by a bereaved spouse claiming loss of companionship, society, love and affection, comfort, sexual relations, or other intangible damages in the broad *367term “conjugal rights.” See generally: Measure and Elements of Damages in Wife’s Action for Loss of Consortium, 74 A.L.R.3d 805; DeMarines v. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, 433 F.Supp. 1047 (D.C.Pa.1977); Hopkins v. Blanco, 457 Pa. 90, 320 A.2d 139 (1974); Gates v. Foley, 247 So.2d 40 (Fla. 1971); Dini v. Naiditch, 20 Ill.2d 406, 170 N.E.2d 881, 86 A.L.R.2d 1184 (1960). It is well accepted that: “Basing the denial of recovery in a tort action upon the inability to determine damages. . . [is] widely criticized” (footnote omitted) 54 Tulane L.R. 480 at 496, Story Parchment Co. v. Paterson Parchment Paper Company, 282 U.S. 555, 51 S.Ct. 248, 75 L.Ed. 544 (1931); Pugh v. Holmes, 486 Pa. 272, 405 A.2d 897 (1979).
It is also well established thaf there is in fact “no yardstick for determining the value of loss of consortium; it is a matter to be resolved by the trier of fact.” DeMarines v. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, supra at 1057; Aretz v. United States, 456 F. Supp. 397 (S.D.Ga.1978).
Some courts have held in attempted wrongful birth actions and its analogues—wrongful life and wrongful conception—that no cause of action exists because the negligent action of the defendant was not the actual cause in fact of the pregnancy but rather the intimacy of the parents was. Thus, any action by parent or child was derivative of actions entirely removed from the allegedly negligent act. This theory not only appears to ignore the United States Supreme Court’s holdings in Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479, 85 S.Ct. 1678, 14 L.Ed.2d 510 (1965), and its progeny but subscribed to an entirely too narrow interpretation of causation. See Cases, 18 Journal of Family Law 431 (1980).
I would permit the assessment of damages in wrongful birth cases pursuant to the limitations and guidelines I propose for the plaintiff in this opinion.
However, those damages alleged by the plaintiff must be offset or mitigated by a determination of the extent of benefit the parent or parents receive from the existence of *368their unplanned child.4 Coleman v. Garrison, Del.Super., 281 A.2d 616, 83 A.L.R.3d 28 (1971). In this regard, courts have adopted the Benefit Rule in wrongful birth actions. Green v. Sudakin, 81 Mich.App. 545, 265 N.W.2d 411 (1978); Sherlock v. Stillwater Clinic, Minn., 260 N.W.2d 169 (1977); Anonymous v. Hospital, 33 Conn.Sup. 126, 366 A.2d 204 (1976); Troppi v. Scarf, 31 Mich.App. 240, 187 N.W.2d 511 (1971); Coleman, supra.
The Benefit Rule states:
When the defendant’s tortious conduct has caused harm to the plaintiff or to his property and in so doing has conferred upon the plaintiff a special benefit to the interest which was harmed, the value of the benefit conferred is considered in mitigation of damages, where this is equitable.
Restatement of Torts, § 920, cf. Tort Liability and Mitigation of Damages, D. Dobbs, Remedies § 3.7, C. McCormick, Damages § 77, Restatement of Torts § 918.
It has been argued that the Benefit Rule presents similarly inexact factors as the “child’s aid, comfort and society,” at 1370, which parents receive in the rearing of a normal child. I assert, however, that these benefits are ascertainable and quantifiable. While by its very nature, the damages cannot be absolutely certain, they may be obtained with reasonable certainty. It is my desire to map out the matters which need to be considered by a jury in securing reasonable certainty.
Clearly, the Benefit Rule requires a balancing of the added expense to a family resulting from the presence of an unplanned child with the “aid, comfort and society” that child brings to a family. Cf. 54 “Wrongful Life” The Right Not to Be Born, Tulane L.R. at 498. While it is clearly possible, though unlikely, that the benefit accruing to par*369ents of an unplanned child may mitigate all damages claimed by the plaintiff, “[i]t cannot be said as a matter of law that a healthy child always confers a benefit greater than the expense of his birth and support.” Coleman, supra, 281 A.2d at 618.
The Benefit Rule is not without strong criticism from those who reason that damages, if reasonably shown by the plaintiff, need not be mitigated. In, The Case of the Unwanted Blessing: Wrongful Life, 31 U.Miami L.R. 1409, Joseph Kaski finds fault with the application of the Benefit Rule as a balancing of the burdens of pregnancy and parenthood against the benefits related to producing and rearing child found in Troppi, supra, in the following manner:
According to Troppi, the benefits and burdens of pregnancy and parenthood are so integrally related that they should be balanced against each other in applying the same interest limitation to the benefit rule. The court believed that applying the benefit rule in this manner would be best calculated to achieve a fair assessment of damages according to the circumstances of the particular plaintiff, and the circumstances it regarded as being of the greatest moment were the plaintiff’s economic resources, family size, age, and marital status. [31 Mich. App. at 254-255, 187 N.W. at 518]
Although the court’s reasoning possesses an initial allure, close examination reveals that it is fatally flawed. Certainly, the birth of the child may confer certain intangible emotional benefits upon the parent, but these are benefits the parent did not ask for and quite possibly cannot afford. The defendant can be analogized to an officious intermeddler, and when he argues that the damages assessed against him should be offset by the unsolicited benefits of parenthood, the resemblance is quite striking indeed. Let us say that there are two adjacent and uninhabited tracts of land, one owned by the plaintiff and the other owned by the defendant. The defendant wishes to erect a house on his tract, but as a result of a negligent error, erects it on the plaintiff’s property instead. When *370the parties discover the error, they are unable to settle their differences and look to the judicial system for a Solomon-like decision. Three possibilities are immediately apparent.
First, the parties may be left as we find them, on the ground that the defendant has conferred an unsolicited benefit upon the plaintiff for which the latter party should not be made to pay. The problem with this approach is that it is quite harsh on the defendant and may unjustly enrich the plaintiff.
Second, the plaintiff may be required to pay the defendant an amount equal to the value of the improvement to the plaintiff. If this approach is followed, the defendant may not recoup his costs, but at least unjust enrichment of the plaintiff is avoided.
Finally, if the plaintiff does not wish to retain the benefit, the defendant may be permitted to enter upon the plaintiff’s land for the limited purpose of removing the building to the defendant’s own tract.
It will be observed that the Troppi court has followed the second solution, and although this is a most equitable approach when inanimate objects are at issue, it is wholly inadequate when we are dealing with children. To illustrate this assertion, let us examine the plight of the forced parent of modest resources, who cannot afford to raise his unplanned child. If the second solution is followed, the plaintiff’s damage award will be reduced by the benefits of parenthood, that is, those intangible feelings of love we hope most parents feel for their children. At once, a great anomaly becomes apparent; the more loving the parent, the smaller the damage award and the more the entire family will suffer as scarce economic resources are spread over a greater number of family members.
So what are we to do, follow the third solution and place the child for adoption? Certainly not, the Troppi court itself rejects the very idea as abhorent, stating: “The law has long recognized the desirability of permitting a child to be reared by his natural parents.” [Id. at 259, 187 *371N.W.2d at 520] If the forced parent is willing to shoulder the enormous responsibility of parenthood, the law should not throw obstacles in his path but rather should endeavor to do everything in its power to assist him. If this places a difficult burden on the defendant, it is well to remember that he is a tortfeasor, and it is far more equitable to shift the burden to him than to the plaintiffs who placed their faith in him, or the innocent infant for whose birth he is responsible.
What then of the argument that the mother should abort the unplanned child? The very suggestion carries a pungent odor of moral depravity. The defendant, whose tortious act is responsible for the conception of the child, would now force the termination of its existence so that damages assessed against him might be minimized. Moreover, the defendant, who has committed one trespass upon the mother’s body, would expose her to yet another trespass.
It thus becomes apparent that the first solution, which seemed so harsh when applied to houses, is in fact the most equitable when applied to children. But our examples have dealt with the forced parent of modest resources. Does this suggest a sort of discrimination against the affluent? It is submitted that the affluent are just as worthy of recovery as the humble. In both cases, economic resources (though scarcer in one situation than the other) must be spread over a greater number of family members with the result that existing members will receive less than their planned share. It might even be argued that, since the tortfeasor takes his plaintiff as he finds him, the damages awarded to the affluent family should even be greater, so existing family members may maintain their current standard of living, and the latest addition to the family will not have to live as a “second class citizen.” It could also be argued, however, that the financial injury to the affluent family, although greater in the aggregate, is proportionately less, so that, out of some solicitude for the defendant, the damages should be *372geared to the average cost of raising a child with the family supplying anything over that amount if it so desires.
Id. at 1416-1417 (footnotes omitted).
While the argument presented by Mr. Kaski is very convincing, it remains true that under ordinary principles of tort law that the plaintiff must mitigate his damages to whatever extent possible. Restatement of Torts 2d § 918. Similarly, it is true, that children bring substantial joy and affection to their parents. I am well aware of the apparently anomalous result that the loving parent who receives great benefit in return for his affection will receive less economic damages than the parent who has a less healthy relationship with his child; however, our goal is to place the parent of an unplanned child in the shoes he would have been in if he had no child. Certainly, the factors which must be weighed to determine what damages will return the plaintiff to his original position include both economic and noneconomic concerns. The Benefit Rule, though difficult its application may be, clearly presents the most equitable and analytically sound result.
It is asserted that no guidelines may be established to guide the jury in determining damages either as alleged by the plaintiff or after application of the Benefit Rule. I contend that the responsibility placed upon the jury here is no greater than that found in wrongful death or survival actions; and I believe appropriate guidelines may be established to aid the fact finder in determining what damages to award.
Thus, each party bears a unique responsibility in relationship to the process by which damages are to be determined.
The plaintiff will present claims of damages to the fact finder related to the cost of pregnancy and rearing the child through to his majority. The plaintiff shall provide the fact finder with evidence describing family history; standard of living; geographic location; parental aspirations for the child—to the extent reasonably quantifiable—actuarial ascertainment of cost of rearing including cost of food, shelter, *373schooling, medical care, and the cost of the maintenance of a child at a level of comfort and security to which a planned child in the plaintiff’s family would have experienced; and finally, the court shall consider those additional expenses which plaintiff can demonstrate to the court and which the court can determine are reasonably anticipated expenses. The plaintiff may present evidence by use of expert testimony by economists, educators, medical doctors, or any other expert the court finds appropriate. No trial court should require the plaintiff to show with a high degree of certainty what damages exist. The reasonableness of damages must be viewed in light of what this cause of action admits.
The finder of fact shall determine the benefit which visits the plaintiff as the result of the defendant’s allegedly negligent act. It must balance the damages alleged by the plaintiff with benefits alleged by the defendant and reason through the balancing process described in Troppi, supra. The fact finder in this manner shall reach a determination as to the amount of damages.
The defendant, pursuant to ordinary principles of tort law shall have the burden of proving the extent of benefit to offset or mitigate the plaintiff’s damage claims. Stills v. Gratton, 55 Cal.App.3d 698, 127 Cal.Rptr. 652 (1976).
The defendant must prove to the fact finder’s satisfaction, by a preponderance of the evidence that the parents of the unplanned child will benefit. In addition to other elements unique to a particular set of circumstances, the defendant needs to show love and affection, potential financial contributions by the child, or evidence of other satisfaction brought the parent by his relationship with his child.
The defendant may present evidence by use of experts in psychology, psychiatry, sociology, parenting or others. He may present actuarial data indicating the earning potential of the child or actuarial data which determines the contribution of a child to the operation of a household. He also may present evidence of any other kind which the court determines is reasonable and appropriate. However, when the fact finder views this evidence, he must do so in light of the *374realization that many of the toils of love of a parent when rearing a child confront the parent with pain unknown to other circumstances. The child’s financial or household contributions must be viewed in light of the added financial and emotional burden he contributes to the family.
No court, however, shall consider as evidence of mitigation of damages, in its application of the Benefit Rule, any claim by defendant that the plaintiff did not take an opportunity for an abortion or adoption. Such claims shall not be admissible as evidence of mitigation. Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113, 93 S.Ct. 705, 35 L.Ed. 147 (1973). Sherlock v. Stillwater Clinic, supra. All defense claims regarding mitigation shall be made pursuant to the Benefit Rule.
The issues involved in a wrongful birth case touch very closely the privacy rights of parents. Both the United States Supreme Court and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court have expressed strongly the fundamental nature of privacy rights. The burden undertaken by the defendant to prove the extent to which the plaintiff’s damages have been mitigated is not a light one. His actions have a profound effect upon the right of potential parents to decide whether to have children. Accordingly, the fact finder shall be instructed that the burden of the defendant may not be taken lightly. The fundamental rights associated with, child bearing are stated by the Supreme Court of Ohio in Bowman v. Davis, 48 Ohio St.2d 41, 356 N.E.2d 496 (1976):
The choice not to procreate, as part of one’s right to privacy, has become (subject to certain limitations) a constitutional guarantee. See Griswold v. Connecticut,
. .. [supra.]; Roe v. Wade, . . . [supra.]; and Doe v. Bolton, (1973), 410 U.S. 179, 93 S.Ct. 755, 35 L.Ed.2d 147. Id. 48 Ohio St.2d at 46, 356 N.E.2d at 499; Contra: Shaheen v. Knight, 11 Pa.D. & C.2d 41 (1957).
The right to privacy has been recognized by Pennsylvania Courts. The Supreme Court has stated in In Re B, 482 Pa. 471, 394 A.2d 419 (1978):
There can be no question that American jurisprudence recognizes the right to privacy; the only question being *375its limits. See “The Right to Privacy,” by Samuel D. Warren and Louis Brandéis, 4 Harvard Law Review 193. As stated in 77 C.J.S. Right of Privacy at page 397, in some but not all, jurisdictions the existence of such a right has been recognized even in the absence of statutory regulation.
Id., 482 Pa. at 483, 394 A.2d at 425. In the instant case, both the physician involved and the hospital at which the surgical procedures were performed were subject to state regulation.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has extended the right to privacy to greater limits in Commonwealth v. DeJohn, 486 Pa. 32, 403 A.2d 1283 (1979), U.S. cert. denied, 444 U.S. 1032, 100 S.Ct. 704, 62 L.Ed.2d 668 (1980), where, pursuant to P.S.Const. Art. 1 § 8, the right to privacy was held to attach to a check passing through commercial channels. This court shall not make the burden of the defendant a light one without infringing upon a fundamental right.
I recognize a cause of action for the wrongful birthy of a healthy child and would permit damages pursuant to ordinary tort principles as discussed in this opinion.

. Restatement of Torts § 920.

. Contra: Rieck v. Medical Protective Co., 64 Wis.2d 514, 219 N.W.2d 242 (1974).

. For a discussion of this view, see 13 Val.L.R. 129 (1978).

. The term unplanned child shall be used throughout this opinion. Children bom to parents involved in wrongful birth actions are not unwanted in the sense that they are unloved. A parent who finds a child thrust upon him may nevertheless be loving and prove equal to the task of raising a child. Jackson v. Anderson, 230 So.2d 503 (Fla. App. 1970).