breach of contract action

In a breach of contract action, a jury returned a verdict in favor of plaintiff. The Superior Court of San Luis Obispo County, California, declined to dismiss a juror or to grant a new trial based on alleged misconduct. Defendant appealed.

 

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During argument, plaintiff's counsel told the jury it could reject the entire testimony of a witness if it determined that the witness had been willfully false in one material aspect of the testimony. A juror expressed her agreement by clapping her hands. The reviewing court held that the insignificant infraction did not prevent either party from having a fair trial and did not provide a basis for setting aside the verdict. The clapping was technical misconduct because it was tantamount to the formation of an opinion as to the credibility of a witness, but it was not prejudicial. This momentary display occurred after all the evidence had been heard and the closing arguments were nearly completed. The applause, by itself, did not indicate that the juror had unfairly pre-judged the witnesses'credibility or that she was unwilling to consider other jurors points of view. Other jurors testified that they recalled the clapping but not the statement that preceded it. The court also found that no prejudice resulted when, during deliberations, the same juror injected technical knowledge into the deliberations. The court affirmed the judgment.