Court Opinion

ID: 9830367
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-01 20:09:09.861856+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:43:20.308543
License: Public Domain

On Motion for Rehearing.
Both the motion for rehearing filed by appellees and the reply thereto by appellant indicate that our holding in regard to the special charge requested by appellant has been construed as meaning that the special charge as presented should have been given. The instruction requested by appellant was in the nature of a general charge. The case was submitted upon special issues, and it is well established in this State that where a case is submitted upon special issues no instruction in the nature of a general charge should be submitted to the jury. El Paso Electric Co. v. Collins, Tex.Com.App., 23 S.W.2d 295.
If the special charge had been submitted to the jury it would have instructed them, in effect, that although they should find from the evidence that ap-pellees’ land had been injured from flood waters entering the creek from the west or by the waters of Red Deer Creek irrespective of the dyke and although they should believe from the evidence that the presence of the dyke diverted certain flood waters in the creek in a sufficient amount to cause additional damage to the land, still, if they should find that the evidence did not enable them to determine therefrom what portion of the damage was caused by the presence of the dyke they would not undertake to assess any damage based upon mere surmise or speculation in response to any special issue submitted to them. In addition to being in the nature of a general charge, the instruction placed the burden upon the jury of determining whether or not there was any evidence that would support an affirmative answer to the special issue upon the amount of damages. It is also well settled in this State that the question of whether or not there is any evidence to support a special issue is one of law to be determined by the court and, in the absence of any evidence to support a finding, the special issue should not be submitted at all. Tracey v. Wichita Ice Co., Tex.Civ.App., 30 S.W.2d 673.
The rule is that simultaneous or consecutive wrongs done by independent agencies that are not joint tort-feasors can not be joined together to increase damages for which a wrongdoer is responsible, and the rule applies regardless of any difficulty that may be encountered in determining the consequences of the respective injuries. While' it would be immaterial in this case to ascertain in dollars and cents the amount of damage, if any, caused by the flood waters entering Red Deer Creek from the west, it is necessary that the testimony separate that damage from the damage, if any, caused by the maintenance of the dyke on the opposite side of the creek. Since the case was submitted upon special *508issues and probably will be so submitted upon another trial, the jury should be required to ascertain the extent of the respective injuries in order that they might determine the amount of damage that was caused by the maintenance of the dyke, and then only if the evidence is sufficient to constitute the basis for such finding.
We find nothing in the motion for rehearing that changes our views as expressed in the original opinion, and the motion will be overruled.