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Big 3 Motors, Inc. v. Hawie7/16/2004
This court's opinion dated June 30, 2004, is withdrawn, and the following opinion is substituted therefor.
Big 3 Motors, Inc. (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "the company"), appeals from a judgment entered by the Mobile Circuit Court on a jury verdict in favor of Paul Hawie and Scott Kennedy ("the plaintiffs") on claims of negligent entrustment and wanton entrustment. We reverse the judgment and remand the case.
Big 3 Motors is a corporation owned by the Roan family. Fred Roan, Jr., had worked for Big 3 Motors "pretty much all [his] life" and was the treasurer of the company. His duties involved every aspect of the business, including driving company vehicles when it was necessary. It is undisputed that on the day of the accident made the basis of this action, Roan was acting in his capacity as an officer and an employee of the corporation.
On March 7, 2000, "Mardi Gras Day," a "skeleton" crew was working for the company and Roan was the "top man on the totem pole" that day. Roan decided to close the shop down at around noon because of the lack of business on that day. Roan testified that he decided to go pick up a tow truck that was being repaired and bring it back to the place of business before closing for the day. As he drove east on Highway 90 in the company's tow truck, Roan saw Hawie's vehicle ahead of him. Roan testified that he believed Hawie's vehicle was going to continue traveling through an intersection but that Hawie then made an erratic stop that forced Roan to slam on his brakes. The tow truck collided with the rear of Hawie's vehicle, in which Kennedy was a passenger; both Hawie and Kennedy were injured.
Hawie and Kennedy filed a complaint against Roan and Big 3 Motors, alleging claims of negligence and wantonness against Roan and alleging that Big 3 Motors had negligently and wantonly entrusted the company's vehicle to Roan. At trial, the plaintiffs introduced evidence demonstrating that Roan had been convicted of driving under the influence ("DUI") on eight previous occasions. Evidence was also presented indicating that Roan had been charged and tried for criminal DUI as a result of the accident in this case but that he was acquitted of the charge.
A jury returned a verdict on the negligence and wantonness claims against Roan and in favor of Hawie and Kennedy. The jury awarded compensatory damages in the amount of $2,000 to Hawie and $750 to Kennedy. The jury also awarded punitive damages in the amount of $15,000 against Roan.
The jury also returned a verdict on the negligent--and wanton-entrustment claims against Big 3 Motors and in favor of Hawie and Kennedy. The jury awarded $0 in compensatory damages against Big 3 Motors, but it awarded punitive damages in the amount of $20,000 against Big 3 Motors. The trial court entered a judgment on the jury's verdict. Big 3 Motors appeals.
Big 3 Motors raises only two issues on appeal. We first turn to Big 3 Motors' contention that the plaintiffs failed to present sufficient evidence of negligent entrustment.
"The essential ingredients of a cause of action for negligent entrustment are: (1) an entrustment of the vehicle; (2) to an incompetent; (3) with knowledge that he is incompetent; (4) negligent or wanton use of the entrusted vehicle which proximately caused the plaintiff's damages; and (5) damages." Jackson v. Searcy, 628 So.2d 887, 889 (Ala.Civ.App.1993). "[I]n reviewing a judgment based upon a jury verdict, this Court must review the record in a light most favorable to the appellee." CSX Transp., Inc. v. Dansby, 659 So.2d 35, 37 (Ala.1995).
*2 Big 3 Motors' sole argument regarding the sufficiency of the evidence as to negligent entrustment is that no evidence was presented indicating that any officer or agent of the company entrusted the compan
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