Court Opinion

ID: 9703903
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-26 00:12:06.085008+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:21:52.918184
License: Public Domain

Williams, C.J.
(concurring). While I concur in the result reached by the majority, I write separately to emphasize the narrowness of the holding with regard to plaintiffs claim that damages were unfairly diminished when the trial judge instructed the jury to reduce its award for future damages to present value, but refused to give a requested instruction on inflation.
The United States Supreme Court, in considering a damage award under the Longshoremen’s and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, 33 USC 904, has recently recognized the necessity of striking a balance between inflation and present value. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corp v Pfeifer, 462 US 523; 103 S Ct 2541; 76 L Ed 2d 768 (1983). A number of decisions in lower courts have reached similar conclusions. See, e.g., Morvant v Construction Aggregates Corp, 570 F2d 626 (CA 6, 1978), cert dis 439 US 801 (1978); Doca v Marina Mercante Nicaraguense, SA, 634 F2d 30 (CA 2, 1980), cert den sub nom Pittston Stevedoring Corp v *753Doca, 451 US 971 (1981); Cords v Anderson, 80 Wis 2d 525; 259 NW2d 672 (1977); Kaczkowski v Bolubasz, 491 Pa 561; 421 A2d 1027 (1980).
In the present case, Justice Riley notes that plaintiffs have not provided this Court with the requested instruction, but that the record indicates that the judge was asked to specify an inflation rate of thirteen percent. Further, since plaintiffs presented no testimony regarding inflation, the court was asked to instruct the jury as to this rate of future inflation as a matter of judicial notice. Although, in a properly presented case, I would find that inflation must be taken into account, on the record before us, I cannot say that the judge erred by refusing to take judicial notice of a future inflation rate of thirteen percent.
Therefore, I leave for another day consideration of this issue in a case in which a party makes an appropriate presentation of evidence and legal argument with regard to the necessity of an instruction on inflation to balance the standard jury instruction requiring reduction of future damages to present value.
Boyle, J., concurred with Williams, C.J.