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Appellate Court Date: 2018.02.08
13:24:23 -06'00'
Barnai v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 2017 IL App (1st) 171940
Appellate Court FRANK BARNAI, Plaintiff, v. WAL-MART STORES, INC.,
Caption INTERNATIONAL CONTRACTORS, INC., and NULINE
TECHNOLOGIES, INC., Defendants (Frank Barnai, as Assignee of
the Contribution Claims of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., International
Contractors, Inc., and Nuline Technologies, Inc., Third-Party
Plaintiff-Appellee; Summit Fire Protection Company, Third-Party
Defendant-Appellant).
District & No. First District, Sixth Division
Docket No. 1-17-1940
Filed December 8, 2017
Decision Under Appeal from the Circuit Court of Cook County, No. 17-L-7543; the
Review Hon. James N. O’Hara and the Hon. Jeffrey Lawrence, Judges,
presiding.
Judgment Reversed in part, vacated in part, and remanded with instructions.
Counsel on Sanchez, Daniels & Hoffman, LLP, of Chicago (John J. Piegore, Brian
Appeal H. Sanchez, and John S. Huntley, of counsel), for appellant.
Healy Scanlon, of Chicago (Martin Healy, Jr., Kevin T. Veugeler, and
Patrick C. Anderson, of counsel), for appellee.
Greenberg Trauig, LLP, of Chicago (Gregory E. Ostfeld, Abigail A.
Clapp, and Michael R. Cedillos, of counsel), for appellee Wal-Mart
Stores, Inc.
Belgrade and O’Donnell, P.C., of Chicago ( Steven B. Belgrade, John
A. O’Donnell, and George M. Velcich, of counsel), for other appellee.
Panel JUSTICE DELORT delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion.
Justice Cunningham concurred in the judgment and opinion.
Presiding Justice Hoffman specially concurred, with opinion.
OPINION
¶1 Plaintiff Frank Barnai sued Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (Wal-Mart), International Contractors,
Inc. (ICI), and Nuline Technologies, Inc. (Nuline), after he was injured while working at a
Wal-Mart store construction site. Wal-Mart, ICI, and Nuline, in turn, filed contribution claims
against Barnai’s employer, Summit Fire Protection Company (Summit), which they then
assigned to Barnai as part of a global settlement agreement. Barnai then dismissed Nuline’s
contribution claim, and the case proceeded to trial on Wal-Mart’s and ICI’s contribution
claims against Summit. The jury was given a verdict form that asked it to apportion fault only
to Summit, Wal-Mart, and ICI. The jury returned a verdict, finding Summit 52% liable for
Barnai’s injuries, and the circuit court entered judgment on that verdict. Summit appealed. We
reverse in part, vacate in part, and remand with instructions.
¶2 BACKGROUND
¶3 On October 16, 2007, plaintiff Frank Barnai was injured while working for Summit at a
Wal-Mart store construction site. Barnai then sued Wal-Mart, the property owner; ICI, the
general contractor; and Nuline, the electrical subcontractor. Those defendants answered
Barnai’s complaint and filed contribution claims against Summit.
¶4 During the course of the litigation, the court struck Wal-Mart’s and Nuline’s answers to
Barnai’s complaint and deemed as admitted Barnai’s allegations against those defendants.
Barnai eventually settled with Wal-Mart, ICI, and Nuline for $5,073,463.71. Summit did not
contribute to the settlement.
¶5 Barnai then filed a motion for good faith finding. The motion recited that Barnai had
agreed to settle his claims against Wal-Mart, ICI, and Nuline in exchange for $5,073,463.71
and an assignment of those defendants’ contribution claims against Summit. The motion did
not contain a copy of the settlement agreement nor indicate how the settlement proceeds were
to be allocated among the settling defendants. Despite those omissions, and over Summit’s
objection, the court entered a good faith finding.
¶6 The case later proceeded to trial. During the jury instruction conference, Barnai submitted
a proposed verdict form labeled “IPI 600.16.” The verdict form stated:
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“We, the jury, apportion responsibility as follows:
Wal-Mart ____%
International Contractors ____%
Summit Fire Protection Company ____%
TOTAL: 100%”
Summit submitted its own proposed verdict form, which was identical to Barnai’s proposed
verdict form, except it also contained the following sentence: “(Instruction to the Jury: If you
find that any person was not legally responsible in a way that proximately caused the injured
person’s injury, then you should enter a zero (0)% as to that person or entity.).” The court
rejected Summit’s verdict form and tendered Barnai’s proposed verdict form to the jury.
¶7 After trial, the jury returned a verdict apportioning fault for Barnai’s injuries as follows:
Summit 52%, ICI 38%, and Wal-Mart 10%. The same day, the court entered judgment on the
jury’s verdict. Barnai then moved to convert the contribution verdict to a money judgment.
Summit objected, arguing that (1) Wal-Mart and ICI did not pay more than their pro rata
shares of the common liability and (2) any judgment against it should be reduced by
$773,463.71, the amount its commercial general liability insurer, Interstate Insurance
Company, contributed to the settlement fund.
¶8 Summit also filed a posttrial motion in which it argued that it was entitled to judgment
notwithstanding the verdict because, among other things, the settlement agreement was not in
good faith and Wal-Mart and ICI did not pay more than their pro rata shares of the common
liability. The court ultimately granted Barnai’s motion to convert the verdict to a money
judgment, denied Summit’s posttrial motion, and entered judgment in favor of Barnai and
against Summit for $2,144,201.43, which represented 52% of the $5,073,463.71 settlement
less $950,000—the amount Nuline contributed to the settlement.
¶9 On April 27, 2017, this court heard oral argument on Summit’s appeal. This court ordered
the parties to file supplemental briefs “addressing whether it was necessary for the jury to
assess the responsibility of Nuline in order to calculate Wal-Mart’s, ICI’s, and Summit’s
pro rata shares of the common liability for purposes of resolving the third party claims for
contribution pending against Summit.” The parties filed supplemental briefs as requested, but
on further consideration, this court determined that it lacked jurisdiction and entered an order
dismissing Summit’s appeal. See Barnai v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., No. 1-15-2773 (June 23,
2017) (summary order under Supreme Court Rule 23(c)). This court suggested to the circuit
court that it could cure the jurisdictional defect by entering an order pursuant to Illinois
Supreme Court Rule 304(a) (eff. Mar. 8, 2016) finding that no just reason existed to delay
appeal of the August 31, 2015, order denying Summit’s posttrial motion.
¶ 10 Summit returned to the circuit court and filed a “Motion for Rule 304(a) Finding as to the
August 31, 2015 Order.” On July 26, 2017, the circuit court entered an order finding, pursuant
to Rule 304(a), that there existed “no just reason to delay enforcement or appeal of the August
31, 2015 order.” This appeal followed.1
1
This court entered an order allowing the parties to stand on the briefs they filed in appeal No.
1-15-2773. This court also has the benefit of the oral arguments presented on April 27, 2017, in appeal
No. 1-15-2773. Due to periodic panel rotation and randomization, Justice Cunningham has replaced
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¶ 11 ANALYSIS
¶ 12 We begin by considering whether the circuit court erred by finding that the settlement was
in good faith. Summit first argues that the court erred by finding the settlement in good faith
because the settlement did not allocate any amount for Wal-Mart’s and Nuline’s sanctions
liability. We disagree. The record on appeal shows that Barnai’s lawsuit against Wal-Mart,
ICI, and Nuline sounded in negligence. Moreover, although the court did impose sanctions on
Wal-Mart and Nuline, those sanctions were procedural rather than monetary.
¶ 13 Next, Summit argues that the court erred because the settlement did not contain an
allocation for Barnai’s comparative fault. Summit fails to cite any authority that the court must
consider the plaintiff’s comparative fault in determining whether a settlement was made in
good faith. Accordingly, this argument is waived. Ill. S. Ct. R. 341(h)(7) (eff. Jan. 1, 2016).2
¶ 14 Waiver aside, the record shows that ICI raised comparative fault as an affirmative defense,
and that defense was never stricken. Barnai’s comparative fault was still at issue when the
parties engaged in settlement negotiations, and it was therefore subsumed into the settlement
agreement.
¶ 15 Last, Summit argues that the court erred by finding the settlement in good faith despite the
absence of an allocation of fault among the settling defendants. We find this argument
persuasive. In determining whether a settlement was in good faith, the circuit court must
consider, among other things, “ ‘whether the amount paid by the settling tortfeasor was “within
a reasonable range of the settlor’s fair share [citations].” ’ ” Wreglesworth v. Arctco, Inc., 317
Ill. App. 3d 628, 634 (2000) (quoting In re Guardianship of Babb, 162 Ill. 2d 153, 161 (1994)).
In the present case, the court was not presented with any information about how the settling
defendants had allocated fault amongst themselves at the time it entered a good faith finding.
As a result, the court could not possibly have assessed whether the settlement amounts were
within a reasonable range of each settling defendant’s fair share of the liability. Accordingly,
we must vacate the circuit court’s order entering a good faith finding and remand for a new
good faith hearing based upon the sums paid by each of the defendants as set forth in the April
8, 2015, release and assignment executed by Barnai and the settling defendants.
¶ 16 We next consider the question which formed for the basis for this court’s request for
supplemental briefing: under the Joint Tortfeasor Contribution Act (Contribution Act) (740
ILCS 100/0.01 et seq. (West 2010)), was the jury required to apportion fault to Nuline to
correctly determine the relative fault of Wal-Mart, ICI, and Summit. We find that it was.
¶ 17 Section 2(b) of the Contribution Act provides:
Justice Rochford from the original panel. However, Justice Cunningham has listened to the recording of
the oral arguments.
2
Summit cited Ewanic v. Pepper Construction Co., 305 Ill. App. 3d 564 (1999), but only to
acknowledge the general rule that evidence of a plaintiff’s comparative fault is impermissible in a
contribution trial. In an effort to argue around this rule, Summit’s appellate brief contains the following
quote from Ewanic: “the settlement already include[s] a reduction from the [plaintiff’s] total damages
based on [settling defendant’s] affirmative defense of contributory negligence.” Id. at 565. Summit
contends that the legal reasoning contained in that language is the reason that comparative fault
evidence is generally disallowed in contribution trials. Summit’s brief fails to acknowledge that the
language it quoted from Ewanic was not the court’s holding but rather its summary of the circuit court’s
holding contained in the opinion’s opening passage.
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“The right of contribution exists only in favor of a tortfeasor who has paid more than
his pro rata share of the common liability, and his total recovery is limited to the
amount paid by him in excess of his pro rata share. No tortfeasor is liable to make
contribution beyond his own pro rata share of the common liability.” 740 ILCS
100/2(b) (West 2010).
This court has explained that “[t]he ‘common liability’ is ‘that amount actually paid by the
parties defendant to the injured party pursuant to a good-faith settlement in a reasonable
amount in exchange for a full release.’ ” (Emphasis added.) Zellers v. Hernandez, 406 Ill. App.
3d 124, 127 (2010) (quoting Mallaney v. Dunaway, 178 Ill. App. 3d 827, 832 (1988)); see
Ziarko v. Soo Line R.R. Co., 161 Ill. 2d 267, 286 (1994) (“ ‘[C]ommon liability’ in the case at
bar means the good-faith amount stated in the settlement agreement.”). As such, it necessarily
follows that, to determine each contribution defendant’s pro rata share of the common
liability, the jury must be allowed to apportion fault to each party that contributed to the
settlement fund, including settling defendants who are not parties to the contribution case. See
Truszewski v. Outboard Motor Marine Corp., 292 Ill. App. 3d 558, 565 (1997).
¶ 18 Based on the foregoing, it is clear that the verdict form that was tendered in this case, by
precluding the jury from assigning fault to Nuline, failed to accurately state the law. If the court
gives an instruction that inaccurately states the law, reversal is warranted “if the error resulted
in ‘serious prejudice’ to the [appellant].” Studt v. Sherman Health Systems, 2011 IL 108182,
¶ 28 (quoting Heastie v. Roberts, 226 Ill. 2d 515, 543 (2007)).
¶ 19 We find that Summit was prejudiced by the erroneous verdict form. Summit was entitled to
have the jury determine its degree of fault in accordance with the strictures of the Contribution
Act. The verdict form that was tendered precluded that from happening. Because the verdict
form that was tendered required that the sum of each defendant’s fault add up to 100 and the
jury was precluded from assigning fault to Nuline, it is possible that the jury attributed a
greater degree of fault to Summit than it would have if it had been able to assign fault to
Nuline.
¶ 20 In summary, Summit was prejudiced by Nuline’s absence from the verdict form. The jury’s
verdict therefore cannot stand. We reverse the circuit court’s order denying Summit’s posttrial
motion for new trial, vacate the circuit court’s orders entering judgment on the jury’s verdict
and converting the judgment to a monetary amount, and remand for a new trial.
¶ 21 In his supplemental brief, Barnai argues strenuously that Summit had waived the verdict
form issue several times over by (1) failing to object to Nuline’s absence during the
instructions conference, (2) itself tendering a verdict form that excluded Nuline, (3) failing to
include the issue in its posttrial motion, and (4) failing to include the issue in its appellate brief.
It has long been understood, however, that the waiver rule is an admonishment to the parties
and not a restriction on this court’s jurisdiction. Jackson v. Board of Election Commissioners,
2012 IL 111928, ¶ 33. “[C]ourts of review may sometimes override considerations of waiver
or forfeiture in the interests of achieving a just result and maintaining a sound and uniform
body of precedent.” Id.
¶ 22 Those interests are manifest in this case. Although Summit could have argued in the court
below that Nuline should have been included on the verdict form, it can hardly be faulted for
failing to do so given that Illinois Pattern Jury Instructions, Civil, No. 600.16 (2011), explicitly
forbade including Nuline. Moreover, by honoring Summit’s waiver, this court would work a
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manifest injustice since Summit indisputably did not have its rights and liabilities fairly
determined by the jury in accordance with the requirements of the Contribution Act.
¶ 23 We note two final issues in closing. First, in its appellate brief, Summit contended that it
was entitled to judgment n.o.v. because Wal-Mart’s, ICI’s, and Nuline’s assignments were
nullities. This argument was predicated on Summit’s theory that the value of the assignment
was exactly to the value of the contribution verdict. Thus, in Summit’s view, rather than pay
more than their pro rata shares, Wal-Mart, ICI, and Nuline paid exactly their pro rata shares
and thus never possessed contribution claims to assign in the first instance. Regardless of
whether this argument has merit, it would be premature to resolve it now, in light of our
disposition remanding this case for retrial.
¶ 24 Second, in its brief, Summit also argued that it was entitled to a $773,463.71 setoff against
the common liability as the result of sums paid toward the global settlement with Barnai by its
insurance carrier, Interstate Fire and Casualty Company. As Barnai correctly points out,
Summit did not include this issue in its posttrial motion. Accordingly, this issue is forfeited. Ill.
S. Ct. R. 366(b)(2)(iii) (eff. Feb. 1, 1994); Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. v. Nauss, 226 Ill.
App. 3d 1014, 1019 (1992).
¶ 25 CONCLUSION
¶ 26 We vacate the circuit court’s order entering a good faith finding and remand the case for a
new good faith hearing. In addition, we vacate the circuit court’s orders entering judgment on
the jury’s verdict and converting the judgment to a monetary amount. We reverse the circuit
court’s order denying Summit’s motion for a new trial and remand the case to the circuit court
for a new trial.
¶ 27 Reversed in part, vacated in part, and remanded with instructions.
¶ 28 PRESIDING JUSTICE HOFFMAN, specially concurring:
¶ 29 I concur in the result reached by the majority. I write separately to state what I believe is the
most compelling reason to reverse the judgment entered against Summit and remand the matter
back to the circuit court for a new trial.
¶ 30 The Contribution Act provides, in pertinent part:
Ҥ 2. Right of Contribution. (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, where 2
or more persons are subject to liability in tort arising out of the same injury to person or
property, or the same wrongful death, there is a right of contribution among them, even
though judgment has not been entered against any or all of them.
(b) The right of contribution exists only in favor of a tortfeasor who has paid more
than his pro rata share of the common liability, and his total recovery is limited to the
amount paid by him in excess of his pro rata share. No tortfeasor is liable to make
contribution beyond his pro rata share of the common liability.” (Emphasis added.) 740
ILCS 100/2(a), (b) (West 2014).
Under section 2(b) of the Contribution Act, “common liability” is defined as “ ‘the total sum of
the liability of all persons who contributed *** to the plaintiff’s injury.’ ” Truszewski v.
Outboard Motor Marine Corp., 292 Ill. App. 3d 558, 561 (1997) (quoting Illinois Pattern Jury
Instructions, Civil, No. 600.00 (3d ed. Supp. 1994)). In this case, the “ ‘common liability’ ” is
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the gross amount paid by the settling defendants to Barnai, which extinguished not only their
liability but also Summit’s liability for Barnai’s damages. See Ziarko v. Soo Line R.R. Co., 161
Ill. 2d 267, 286-87 (1994).
¶ 31 A party against whom contribution is sought cannot be forced to pay more than its pro rata
share of common liability, and the recovery of the party seeking contribution is limited to the
amount paid by it in excess of its pro rata share of common liability. 740 ILCS 100/2(b) (West
2014). Consequently, neither the amount that Summit can be forced to pay as contribution nor
the maximum amounts that Barnai, as assignee of either Wal-Mart’s or ICI’s contribution
claims, is entitled to recover can be determined unless their respective pro rata shares of
common liability is first determined. Since common liability is the sum of Wal-Mart’s, ICI’s,
Nuline’s, and Summit’s fault, which must equal 100%, the pro rata share of common liability
of the individual parties cannot be assessed without reference to Nuline’s pro rata share. See
Truszewski, 292 Ill. App. 3d at 565. I believe, therefore, that the verdict form tendered to the
jury in this case, which failed to include an assessment of Nuline’s responsibility, failed to
accurately state the law and should never have been given. Consequently, I too conclude that
the judgment entered on the jury’s verdict against Summit must be reversed and the matter
remanded for a new trial on Barnai’s claims, as assignee of Wal-Mart and ICI, for contribution
against Summit.
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