In Joseph P. Pritchett v. Mike Gaines and Janet Gaines, as Next Friends for Martha Michelle Gaines, Non Compos Mentis; Cause No. 12-10-00167 in the Twelfth Court of Appeals at Tyler, the jury found that the driver of an 18-wheeler transporting a used oil rig, which struck Michelle Gaines' vehicle and left her non compos mentis, was negligent, awarding $8 million in damages. The jury found Pritchett, to whose equipment yard the rig was being transported, jointly and severally liable for those damages under a theory of joint enterprise liability. The Court of Appeals reversed and rendered, holding that there was no evidence of an equal right of control by Pritchett in the direction of the enterprise as required for joint enterprise liability.
The jury's verdict was based upon the following evidence as recited by the Court of Appeals. Pritchett, the equipment yard operator, saw a photograph of the rig before the accident. When Adkinson, the employer of the driver of the 18-wheeler, purchased the rig, he told the seller that he was buying the rig to blueprint it. Adkinson spoke to Pritchett about blueprinting the oil rig. Pritchett knew that Adkinson was taking the rig to Pritchett's equipment yard near Corpus Christi. Pritchett was on Adkinson's property just four days before the accident. After the accident, Adkinson called Pritchett to tell him about the accident. Also after the accident, Pritchett lent Adkinson a substantial amount of money, and there was significant evidence that Adkinson was not creditworthy. Gaines presented evidence that Pritchett and Adkinson were not honest to the jury.
The Tyler Court of Appeals held that the foregoing constituted no evidence of a joint enterprise concerning the oil rig. More specifically, the court held that the evidence was legally insufficient to find that Pritchett had an equal right of control over the rig and 18-wheeler at the time of the accident. The Texas Supreme Court has denied review, and a motion for rehearing is pending.
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