Allocation Of Fault Is A Factual Determination For The Jury

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Plaintiff appealed the jury’s finding that he was sixty percent at fault for the accident and the trial court’s denial of his motion for a new trial in James Justice v. Paul Gaiter Et Al, No. M2019-01299-COA-R3-CV, Court Of Appeals Of Tennessee At Nashville (October 15, 2020). The Tennessee Court of Appeals dealt with the issue of who determines facts in a jury trial.

ZALMA OPINION

It is axiomatic that people involved in an automobile collision believe that the other party was at fault and they were innocent. In a case where a jury apportions liability contrary to the belief of one party who gets no damages, an appeal is almost inevitable. No court of appeal will ever interpose its judgment of the evidence over the judgment of the jury and therefore the plaintiff had no chance in this appeal.