Jameson v. Liquid Controls Corp.

Excerpt

1. Judgments: Appeal and Error. On questions of law, a reviewing court has an obligation to reach its own conclusions independent of those reached by the lower courts. 2. Jury Instructions: Proof: Appeal and Error. To establish reversible error from a court's refusal to give a requested instruction, an appellant has the burden to show that (1) the appellant was prejudiced by the court's refusal to give the tendered instruction, (2) the tendered instruction is a correct statement of the law, and (3) the tendered instruction is warranted by the evidence. 3. Jury Instructions: Appeal and Error. In reviewing a claim of prejudice from instructions given or refused, the instructions must be read together, and if, taken as a whole, they correctly state the law, are not misleading, and adequately cover the issues supported by the pleadings and evidence, there is no prejudicial error necessitating reversal.Page 490 4. Motions for New Trial: Appeal and Error. A motion for new trial is addressed to the discretion of the trial court, whose decision will be upheld in the absence of an abuse of discretion. A motion for new trial is to be granted only when error prejudicial to the rights of the unsuccessful party has occurred. 5. Damages: Appeal and Error. The amount of damages to be awarded is a determination solely for the fact finder, and its action in this respect will not be disturbed on appeal if it is supported by the evidence and bears a reasonable relationship to the elements of the damages proved. 6. Torts: Compromise and Settlement: Damages. A nonsettling defendant against whom a jury verdict is entered is entitled to a pro tanto reduction in that verdict to the extent the plaintiff has received satisfaction from a settling defendant for the same injuries as the jury awarded damages. 7. Products Liability: Negligence. Assumption of risk, und