Allows Both Parties The Right To Seek Costs
Aero-News has reviewed, and verified as accurate, documents dated
October 13, 2008 from the Court of Appeals of the State Of
Washington... that show a controversial ruling against the
Experimental Aircraft Association and the Northwest EAA Fly-In,
stemming from a July 1999 takeoff accident during the Arlington
Fly-In, has been overturned on appeal.
"We reverse the judgment in favor of Corbitt and remand for
entry of judgment in favor of NWEAA and EAA," reads the last line
of the 17-page filing, obtained by ANN.
As ANN reported, a Snohomish County Superior
Court jury awarded $10.5 million to the family of Don Allen
Corbitt, the pilot who died in the July 7, 1999 accident at the
Northwest EAA Fly-In. The jury determined both the national
Experimental Aircraft Association, as well as the regional EAA
chapter, were responsible for a large percentage of the
damages.
That decision flew in the face of determinations made by the
National Transportation Safety Board... which ruled "the pilot's
excessive climb rate, which lead to his failure to maintain an
airspeed above stalling speed (Vs)" was the probable cause of the
takeoff crash. "Factors include the pilot's lack of total
experience in the aircraft make and model," the NTSB added.
Corbitt's widow sued NWEAA and EAA, as well as the City of
Arlington, in June 2002... alleging all three were negligent for
"failing to adequately respond to Mr. Corbitt's accident" and
failing "to provide adequate fire, rescue, and emergency response
for the fly-in." The plaintiff argued all three were liable
"because the defendants owned, managed, leased, or otherwise
controlled" the land where Corbitt's aircraft crashed (shown in the
image below).
The court later granted a June 2004 motion filed by the City of
Arlington, seeking a summary judgment removing it from all
responsibility. A similar request for summary judgment filed by
NWEAA and EAA was denied, however.
In January 2007, a jury returned a $10.5 million verdict against
all three entities, stating they each bore responsibility for the
accident, and Corbitt's subsequent death in a post-impact fire. The
jury apportioned fault "at 45 percent to NWEAA, 40 percent to EAA,
and 15 percent to the City of Arlington." The judge later reduced
the amount of damages by 15 percent, which
eliminated Arlington's obligation to repay its share of the
verdict award.
NWEAA and EAA appealed that decision, as well as the earlier
ruling against those entities' summary judgment request. Corbitt's
widow, in turn, appealed the judge's reduction of the damages...
though she did not appeal the earlier ruling of summary judgment in
favor of the city.
In its
ruling issued Monday, the Appeals Court sided with NWEAA and EAA on
the matter of summary judgment... effectively rendering the later
jury verdict null and void.
"A cause of action in negligence requires that a plantiff
establish the existence of a duty owed, the breach of that duty, a
resulting injury, and the proximate cause between the breach and
the injury," the court wrote. "...But NWAA and EAA did not control
the portion of the airport where Mr. Corbitt crashed. Nothing in
the report supports a conclusion that NWEAA was in control of the
fire or first aid personnel.
"We find no basis in Washington law to hold that NWEAA, as a
possessor of land, had a duty to provide first-aid services to Mr.
Corbitt, a business invitee, once he had left the premises
possessed by NWEAA," the court added. "We hold that as a matter of
law, NWEAA and EAA were entitled to summary judgment on the issue
of duty."
The court adds that counsel may file a motion for
reconsideration of the Appeals Court ruling within 20 days. NWEAA
and EAA may also file a claim for costs incurred in fighting the
lawsuit within 10 days of the ruling.
Even if the court's decision is upheld and NWEAA and EAA are
cleared of any wrongdoing, once-and-for-all, things will never be
the same for EAA, or the organizers of regional fly-ins.
Over the past year, EAA has renegotiated contracts with all
fly-ins that once freely used "EAA" in their names, even if those
events weren't EAA-sanctioned events. The EAA's new policy shuns
any implied sponsorship of regional fly-ins, by removing 'EAA' from
those events' titles.
EAA will continue to maintain most of its support for those
shows, including promotional duties and sponsorship of aviation
educational activities such as forums and workshops... but where
the new policy hurts organizers most, is in the matter of
insurance.
In the past, EAA arranged for insurance coverage for regional
fly-ins as part of its overall av-insurance plan. Regional
organizers would then reimburse EAA for their portion of insurance
costs -- meaning, in essence, fly-ins benefited from paying the
EAA's rates. Under the new agreement, regional fly-in events must
secure their own insurance, often at significantly higher
costs.
That decision came as a direct result of the January 2007 jury
verdict.
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