KRISTINA M. GREER, APPELLANT,
v.
S.V.T., INC., A/K/A SUPERIOR VIDEO TECH, INC., APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Kristina Greer appealed a products liability judgment in her favor against S.V.T., Inc., arguing trial errors deprived her of fair jury consideration. The court reversed and remanded for a new trial due to the erroneous submission of a comparative negligence defense to the jury that had been previously resolved against the defendant and conceded to be waived.
The trial court erred in allowing S.V.T. to submit the comparative negligence defense to the jury. Although the trial court corrected this error post-trial by entering judgment for the full amount without offset, reversal and remand for a new trial was required because the incomplete trial record (missing first two days of transcript) prevented meaningful appellate review of how the error affected the trial.
[1] A comparative negligence defense is improperly submitted to the jury when the issue was previously resolved against the defendant by partial summary judgment and not incl…
[2] A new trial is required when a significant portion of the trial record is unavailable and the parties cannot agree on a statement of the evidence or proceedings to recons…
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“While S.V.T. raised the defense of comparative negligence in its answer, that issue was resolved against S.V.T. in a partial summary judgment. During pretrial proceedings, S.V.T. also conceded that it did not claim, and would not argue at the time of trial, that Greer improperly used the product.”
Establishes that the comparative negligence defense had been previously resolved against defendant and defendant had conceded it would not pursue this defense
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceGreer brought a products liability claim against S.V.T., Inc. S.V.T. initially raised a comparative negligence defense in its answer, but this defense…
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ORFINGER, J.
Christina Greer appeals a' final judgment in her favor against S.V.T., Inc. in a products liability, claim. Greer argues that several trial errors deprived her of fair consideration of her claim by the jury. We reverse' for a new trial.
Greer claims that the trial court erred when it permitted S.V.T.. to maintain a comparative negligence defense at trial. While S.V.T. raised the defense of comparative negligence in its answer, that issue was resolved against S.V.T. in a partial summary judgment. During pretrial proceedings, S.V.T. also conceded that it did not claim, and would not argue at the time of trial, that Greer improperly used the product.
Additionally, the joint pretrial stipulation failed to list comparative negligence as an issue to be considered at trial.
Nonetheless, the issue of comparative negligence was submitted to the jury, which found Greer to be twenty percent at fault. Post-trial, the trial judge realized the error and entered judgment in Greer’s favor for one hundred percent of the damages determined by the jury, without any offset for comparative negligence. S.V.T. contends this cured the error. Unfortunately, through no fault of the parties, the court reporter that covered most of the trial disappeared with her notes, and, as a result, Greer was unable to obtain a transcript of the first two days of the three-day trial.1 We entered an order pursuant to Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.200(b)(4), requesting that the trial court and the parties make an effort to reconstruct .those portions of the record that were missing.
However, the parties were unable to agree, and the trial court did not settle and approve a statement of the evidence or proceedings sufficient to allow meaningful appellate review.
' Our review of the pleadings and papers contained in the récord leads us to the conclusion that it was error to allow S.V.T. to argue comparative negligence to the jury. However, how that error may have affected the trial is impossible for us to say given the lack of a complete record. Accordingly, we conclude that justice requires a'new trial.
. Finally, because the matter might come up again, we comment on an issue that occurred during S.V.T.’s closing argument. When referring to Greer’s evaluation by a psychiatrist, S.V.T.’s. attorney argued “[H]ad she gone there for a medical evaluation and treatment? No, her lawyer said, no, this guy, he’s going to give us a great report.” (Emphasis added). There is no evidence in the record that would support S.V.T.’s argument that Greer’s lawyer told her that the expert would “give us a great report.” This argument was improper and should not be repeated on retrial.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
GRIFFIN and PALMER, JJ., concur. . The record indicates the reporter was Fransescá St. John of Esquire Deposition Services, Orlando, Florida.
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Gervin v. State, 920 So. 2d 733 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006)…transcript through no fault of his own, and the missing transcript is necessary for a complete review of the case, the defendant is entitled to receive a new trial. Pepitone v. State, 846 So. 2d 640 (Fla. 2d DCA 2003). Accord Greer v. S.V.T., Inc., 913 So. 2d 1275 (Fla. 5th DCA 2005). Meaningful appellate review of the trial court’s denial of the defendant’s motion for a mistrial is not possible based on the record provided to us. Therefore, the defendant’s judgment and sentence must be reversed, and this ma…