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SOUTH UNIVERSITY

LEGAL RESEARCH

Case Hypothetical

Civil Litigation Hypothetical Case

Raskin v. Harper

John Griffin

John Griffin is a lawyer. He is married with two adult sons who live in his home. He owned several vehicles, which were used by family members. In 2008, he purchased a used 2005 GMC pickup truck from a lien holder who had it repossessed. Mr. Griffin contacted his insurance agent, Fred Burns, who is the owner and sole proprietor of the Burns Insurance Agency, which is not incorporated. Burns had provided the insurance coverage on Griffin’s other vehicles. Griffin asked Burns to provide $100,000 of liability coverage on the truck. Agent Burns placed the coverage with the Security Insurance Company. Security sent the policy to Griffin in the amount requested. Griffin’s adult son, Chuck Griffin, became the pickup’s principal driver. Mr. Griffin and Chuck treated the truck as though it belonged to Chuck, who routinely paid for gas and minor repairs, although Mr. Griffin paid for the insurance.

William Nordby

William Nordby was born in 1942. He was married and had an adult, married daughter, Laura Raskin. He was a retired farmer and owned a Chevette that from time to time lost engine power and died. Mr. Nordby had a mechanic look at it once, but the mechanic could not find the problem.

Sale of the Pickup Truck

Chuck decided he wanted a used Chevrolet Camaro instead of the pickup truck. He talked to his father about selling the truck. Mr. Griffin agreed that Chuck could sell the truck and that he could use the proceeds to buy a used Camaro. A friend told Chuck that Bradley Harper was looking for a pickup truck. Chuck contacted Harper, and they were able to agree on a sale price of $2,100. Chuck told Mr. Griffin about the buyer and the proposed terms for the sale. Mr. Griffin could not find his certificate of title for the pickup to give to Harper. He was concerned that he might be liable for Harper’s operation of the truck until he could transfer title to Harper. He decided he would keep the Security insurance policy on the truck to protect himself.

John Griffin prepared a handwritten buy-sell agreement, which detailed the terms of the sale, noting that truck was being sold “as is,” that the seller did not have the title as of the sale date but would locate it and would maintain insurance until the title was found.

On April 6, 2009, Chuck met with Harper at their friend’s house. They went over the terms of the written agreement and agreed that it was correct. Both men signed the sale-of-motor-vehicle agreement on April 6, 2009. Harper paid the full purchase price in cash and took immediate possession of the vehicle. Chuck used the proceeds to buy a used Camaro.

Insurance

On April 10, 2009, Chuck notified the Burns Agency that his father had sold the pickup and that they had purchased a Chevrolet Camaro to replace it. Chuck asked for insurance coverage for the Camaro. An insurance secretary at the Burns Agency completed the necessary documents to cancel the policy on the truck and transfer the unearned premium to a new policy for the Camaro. The secretary sent the documents to the Security Insurance Company, which placed coverage on the Camaro and terminated coverage on the truck. The Griffins received a credit for the unused premium on the truck. The credit was applied to the insurance on the Camaro.

Harper called Mr. Griffin several times and asked him to provide the certificate of title. Although the buy-sell agreement provided that Mr. Griffin would use his best efforts to locate the certificate of title and deliver it to Harper, after six months passed, he stopped looking for it. Unbeknownst to Mr. Griffin, the liability insurance terminated by operation of law at the time of the sale to Harper because Griffin no longer had an insurable interest in it. Harper had to buy his own coverage and pay whatever premium was appropriate for his status and risk. Nevertheless, Harper expected Mr. Griffin to “keep” insurance on the pickup for Harper’s benefit. Although John Griffin was a practicing lawyer, he did not realize his coverage had terminated, and he made no effort to buy other insurance for Harper. Even if he could have paid for liability insurance for Harper, the policy would have to have been purchased in Harper’s name.

The Accident

The accident occurred on October 17, 2009, on Hubbard County Road 13, two hundred yards west of County Road 118 in Virginia. County Road 14 is a two-lane, asphalt, secondary highway. There are pastures and farmland on each side of the road and gentle rolling hills. County Road 118 forms a T intersection with County Road 13, going to the north. Harper was driving the pickup east on County Road 13. He had an adult passenger named James Patner. Patner lived in North Carolina and was visiting Harper. The weather was overcast. A weather report for the nearest airport showed no precipitation that day. The highway was in good condition. Traffic was limited and driving conditions were good in every respect.

Harper believes he was driving about 55 miles per hour, which is the posted speed limit. As Harper came over the crest of a hill, he noticed a Chevette in his lane. It seemed to be travelling slowly, slower than he wanted to travel. There were no oncoming vehicles. The County Road 118 intersection was about 200 yards ahead of the Chevette. Harper did not see any turn signal on the Chevette. He decided to pass. As he approached the rear of the Chevette, he says, the Chevette moved to the left but did not change speed. Harper applied his brakes and skidded forward. The front end of the truck struck the left rear corner of the Chevette. The sheriff later measured 78 feet of skid marks left by the pickup. The Chevette spun counterclockwise and came to rest north of the intersection on the east shoulder of 118. The truck came to rest at the northeast corner of the intersection, facing southeasterly.

Mr. Nordby was driving to visit his daughter. He could have reached her house by going straight ahead on CR 13 or turning left on CR 118. The Hubbard County sheriff investigated. Harper told him Nordby’sChevette made a sudden lane change and/or left turn directly in front of him while he was attempting to pass. He had not sounded his horn. The Chevette did not signal for a left turn. He said he could not avoid the Chevette. Nordby was unconscious at the scene. An ambulance transported him to a regional hospital. He regained consciousness, but he never left the hospital. Nobody questioned him about the accident.

Injuries and Property Damage

Mr. Nordby’s injuries led to his death on November 10, 2009. He was 69. His only income was from social security and from properties in joint tenancy with his wife. His wife and adult daughter, Laura Raskin, survived him. They incurred $115,345 in medical expenses for Nordby’s care and $4,772 for funeral burial expenses. The Chevette was not repairable. It had a fair market value of $4,500.

Harper did not require hospitalization. He sustained some minor cuts on his face and scalp and suffered a neck and back sprain. He started having recurring headaches and was irritable for months following the accident. He saw his family doctor four times over the following six months. He had 12 chiropractic treatments for his neck and back during the second month following the accident. His condition improved, but his chiropractor believes that Harper will have some permanent disability of his spine because of the accident. His medical expenses total $355. His chiropractic expenses total $375. All the expenses have been covered by Harper’s medical insurance. The pickup truck was considered to be a total loss.

Insurance Coverage Problems

Harper contacted John Griffin to get the name of the insurance company Griffin had used to insure the pickup, as provided in the buy-sell agreement. At that time, Griffin assumed he still had coverage, because he had not asked the agent to cancel it. He assumed that he had paid the premiums through an automatic payment plan. He was unaware that his son had told the agent that the pickup had been sold or that coverage had been transferred to the Camaro. John contacted agent Burns and told him about the accident. He explained the buy-sell agreement and related circumstances. Burns informed Mr. Griffin that the records showed coverage on the pickup had been terminated at the customer’s request. Nevertheless, Burns contacted the Security Insurance Company about the accident and claim for coverage. Security responded that it did not provide coverage. Its records also showed that coverage had been terminated and the unused premium had been applied to the Camaro in April. Mr. Griffin retained attorney, Sandra Gillis to help him deal with the situation. In the meantime, he explained to Harper that he believed that Security should provide coverage, but the company was not cooperating.

Litigation

Laura Raskin hired attorney Donald Smith to seek money damages for her father’s wrongful death. Smith filed documents to have Raskin appointed trustee to represent the heirs and next of kin. On July 29, 2010, the Hubbard County District Court appointed Raskin to be trustee. She then commenced a civil action in the Hubbard County District Court against Bradley Harper. The suit is titled Laura Raskin, as Trustee for the heirs and next of kin of William Nordby v. Bradley Harper. Because John Griffin did not own the pickup and was not vicariously liable for Harper’s operation of it, no action was brought against him. The trustee alleged Harper was negligent for driving at an excessive rate of speed, failing to maintain control of his truck, improperly passing, failing to signal his pass, and failing to keep a proper lookout. The trustee asked for money damages in the amount of $400,000.

Attorney Smith retained an accident reconstructionist to help investigate the accident. The accident reconstructionist was erroneously informed or assumed that the skid marks were 121 feet in length.

Harper retained attorney William Hock to represent him. Hock plans to file an answer to the complaint. He also plans to file suit on behalf of Harper.