Sinnott v. Thompson

Summary

The Delaware Supreme Court reviewed a choice-of-law issue arising from a North Carolina vehicle accident involving Delaware residents and a Delaware-registered vehicle. Applying the Restatement (Second) of Conflict of Laws's most-significant-relationship test, the court held that Delaware law, including comparative negligence, governed the plaintiff's negligence and negligent-entrustment claims rather than North Carolina's contributory-negligence rule. The court affirmed the Superior Court's denial of summary judgment.

Holdings

1. Delaware had the most significant relationship to the occurrence and the parties under the Restatement (Second) of Conflict of Laws, so Delaware comparative-negligence law, rather than North Carolina contributory-negligence law, governed Thompson's negligence claim against Sinnott.
2. Delaware had the most significant relationship to Thompson's negligent-entrustment claim against Pepper, so Delaware law governed that claim.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Delaware's most-significant-relationship choice-of-law test required application of Delaware comparative-negligence law rather than North Carolina contributory-negligence law to Thompson's negligence claim against Sinnott.
2. Whether Delaware law governed Thompson's negligent-entrustment claim against Pepper, whose vehicle was owned, registered, and insured in Delaware.

Disposition

affirmed