Joanne Stanton, Appellant, v. GASPORT VIEW DAIRY FARM INC (1997)

Joanne Stanton (plaintiff) appeals from a judgment upon a jury verdict dismissing the complaint seeking damages for personal injuries plaintiff sustained when a motorcycle on which she was a passenger overturned.   The jury found that defendants were negligent but that their negligence was not a cause of plaintiff's injuries.   As instructed, the jury ceased deliberations after answering those two questions.

We agree with plaintiff that the verdict is against the weight of the evidence.   Upon our review of the record, we conclude that the jury could not have reached its verdict on any fair interpretation of the evidence (see, Nicastro v. Park, 113 A.D.2d 129, 134, 495 N.Y.S.2d 184).   Although a finding of causation “does not inevitably flow from a finding of culpable conduct” (Gaston v. Viclo Realty Co., 215 A.D.2d 174, 626 N.Y.S.2d 131, lv. denied 87 N.Y.2d 804, 640 N.Y.S.2d 877, 663 N.E.2d 919, cert. denied 517 U.S. 1169, 116 S.Ct. 1570, 134 L.Ed.2d 669), in this case it is logically impossible to find negligence without also finding causation (see, Vera v. Bielomatik Corp., 199 A.D.2d 132, 133, 605 N.Y.S.2d 75;  Bucich v. City of New York, 111 A.D.2d 646, 490 N.Y.S.2d 208).   The jury found that defendants were negligent in depositing mud and liquid manure on the highway, or permitting it to remain there, and it is undisputed that the operator of the motorcycle lost control in attempting to avoid that material.   Thus, the jury must have concluded that the accident was caused entirely by the negligence of the operator of the motorcycle or that plaintiff sustained no injury.   Neither alternative is supported by the record.

Judgment unanimously reversed on the law without costs and new trial granted.

MEMORANDUM: