Court Opinion

ID: 9579421
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 21:55:01.005526+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:35:30.133134
License: Public Domain

YETKA, Justice
(dissenting).
I dissent. I do not believe that trial counsel should be required to rely on a trial judge’s recollection of what occurred during the court’s discussion with jurors during or subsequent to trial.
Plaintiffs argue the presence of clerical error in the jury’s verdict. Generally, after the jury has been discharged, no affidavit of a juror or a third person concerning a juror’s remarks will be received to impeach the verdict where the facts sought to be shown inhere in the verdict itself. E. g., Weber v. Stokely-Van Camp, Inc., 274 Minn. 482, 491, 144 N.W.2d 540, 545 (1966). This includes attempts to show that the jurors misunderstood the evidence, the charge of the court, or the legal consequences of their factual findings. Bauer v. Rummer, 244 Minn. 488, 490, 70 N.W.2d 273, 275 (1955); 14 Dunnell, Dig. (3 ed.) § 7109; 66 C.J.S., New Trial § 169. Clerical errors, however, are an exception to this rule. Bauer v. Kummer, 244 Minn. 488, 491, 70 N.W.2d 273, 275; Paul v. Pye, 135 Minn. 13, 159 N.W. 1070 (1916); 8 Wigmore, Evidence (McNaughton Rev.) § 2355; 66 C.J.S., New Trial, § 169m. The standards for relief from clerical errors are set forth in Bauer v. Kummer, 244 Minn. 488, 491, 70 N.W.2d 273, 275:
“There is, however, a so-called exception to the above rule, which is an exception only in appearance since it involves only an impeachment of the paper recording of the verdict and not of the actual verdict to which the jurors had agreed in their deliberations. This exception permits the use of affidavits to show the true verdict for the limited purpose of proving that it was not correctly entered upon the written paper filed with the court. In other words, affidavits of the jurors may be received to show that, by a clerical error of the jury, the verdict returned in court was not the verdict unanimously agreed upon by them.
“A sound public policy demands that a verdict be protected not only from clerical error in its recordation but also from attacks whereby it is sought to vacate, change, or explain the actual verdict on grounds which inhere in the jury room deliberations which led to its rendition. A distinct line must at all times be drawn between an impeachment of the written record of the verdict and an attempted impeachment of the verdict itself. Untold mischief would result if the latter were ever permitted. Great caution must therefore be exercised in granting relief *265for clerical error lest it become a shield behind which to conceal an attack upon the verdict itself. Whether a motion to change a verdict, or in the alternative to vacate it and grant a new trial, calls merely for relief from clerical error in reducing the verdict to writing, or constitutes an attempt to impeach the verdict itself is primarily a question of fact.”
In support of his request for a Schwartz hearing, plaintiffs’ attorney supplied the following affidavit:
“R. P. Brosnahan, being first duly sworn on oath, says he is one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs in the above entitled matter and makes the following affidavit in support of plaintiffs’ motion for hearing to determine the irregularities in the jury’s deliberation and impeachment of the verdict;
“Affiant has not contacted nor spoken directly with any of the jurors or alternate who sat on this case;
“Affiant has been contacted by people who have talked to the jurors and relates the following on information and belief:
“The forewoman of the jury has indicated that she and other members of the jury did not understand the court’s instructions with regard to the special verdict and with regard to the element of negligence; that the jury deliberated for some hours and after they had deliberated almost six hours, it being after 10:00 p. m., they were tired and confused as to the instructions; that at several points they requested the court to answer certain questions concerning their deliberations and were advised their questions were too pointed and that they would have to rely on their own recollections; that after six hours of deliberation the court inquired of the jury whether they wished to go home or whether they felt they could reach a verdict that night. The jurors asked for additional time; went back to the jury room, at which point none of the questions on the special verdict had been answered.
“The jurors turned to the questions relating to damages and resolved them quickly and returned to the questions dealing with liability. The jurors were confused in that, having answered the damage questions, they were under the impression that it did not matter how they answered the liability questions;
“The questions were all answered negatively and the jurors returned with a verdict in a very few minutes; that the jurors were under the impression they had awarded a verdict in favor of the plaintiffs in the amount of the damages and that it was only when they read in the paper to the contrary that they learned of their mistake;
“Since that time the forewoman, and perhaps other jurors, have contacted the court and the county attorney on several occasions concerning their error; that the jurors have indicated that they thought the truck driver was negligent and would have found him so had they been aware this was necessary in order for the plaintiffs to recover.
“Further affiant saith not.
R. P. Brosnahan”
Based on the previously enunciated standards, it is apparent that most of the conduct alleged in the affidavit would not constitute grounds to impeach a verdict. For the most part, the allegations concern misunderstandings about the jury instructions and misunderstandings about the legal consequences of their verdict. Neither of these are grounds for impeaching a verdict. The final sentence alleges, however, “that the jurors have indicated that they thought the truck driver was negligent and would have found him so had they been aware this was necessary in order for the plaintiffs to recover.” This might be interpreted in one of two ways. On the one hand, it might indicate the jury decided the driver was negligent but failed to so indicate on the special verdict form; this would be a clerical error. On the other hand, the same language might be read as indicating the jury decided the driver was not negligent but merely misunderstood the legal consequences of their finding; this would not be grounds for impeaching a verdict.
*266Unfortunately, the trial court did not grant a Schwartz hearing. The trial court did examine two jurors; however, neither of the attorneys was present at the time and no record was made of the proceedings. Instead, the trial court merely denied the motion for the Schwartz hearing along with the other post-trial motions. As a result, there is no record to review the decision on appeal. The trial court appears to have misapprehended the grounds for a Schwartz hearing. One of the purposes of a Schwartz hearing is to provide a forum for review of possible grounds for impeaching the verdict in a manner consistent with judicial safeguards and in so doing, to provide a record on appeal for reviewing the decision. The decision to grant the hearing should not be based solely on whether the affidavit taken alone would justify a decision on the merits. Rather, the decision should be based on whether the allegations of the affidavit raise sufficient justification for further inquiry into possible grounds for impeachment of the verdict. By necessity, this requirement must be liberally construed. I believe that in the instant case the trial court abused its discretion in not permitting the attorneys to be present at the questioning and in not making a verbatim record of the proceedings. It would appear that it was incumbent on the trial court to conduct more than a preliminary, sua sponte inquiry into the substance of the charges.
This court has previously indicated that trial counsel should not be required to rely on a court’s recollection of his discussion with the jury. In Ramfjord v. Sullivan, 301 Minn. 238, 222 N.W.2d 541 (1974), this court dealt with a situation where the jury returned a verdict containing a clerical error. Without either attorney being present, and without making a record, the trial court further instructed the jury and ordered it to retire to correct its error. We reversed and remanded for a new trial for the reasons set out in the majority opinion.
Therefore, in the situation presented here, it was incumbent on the trial court at least to call in a court reporter to make a record of his conferences with the two jurors so that the attorneys for both parties would have a record on which they could .determine the propriety of a motion for a Schwartz hearing.