Tidd v. Kroshus

Summary

The North Dakota Supreme Court reversed a judgment dismissing Michelle Tidd’s negligence action against Scott Kroshus, arising from a collision between Tidd’s bicycle and Kroshus’s car. The Court held that the district court erred by instructing the jury on the sudden emergency doctrine because the evidence did not show an emergency preceding the collision. The error was not harmless because the instruction could have affected the jury’s assessment of Kroshus’s fault, so the case was remanded for a new trial.

Holdings

1. The district court erred in instructing the jury on the sudden emergency doctrine because no evidence showed that Kroshus encountered a dangerous situation before the collision; the collision was an ordinary traffic accident rather than an emergency independent of the parties' conduct.
2. The erroneous sudden-emergency instruction was not harmless because it permitted the jury to apply a lesser standard of care to Kroshus and may have affected the jury's determination of liability and fault.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the district court erred by instructing the jury on the sudden emergency doctrine when the evidence showed no dangerous situation confronting Kroshus before the collision.
2. Whether the instructional error was harmless under N.D.R.Civ.P. 61.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded