AI Generated Opinion Summaries

This summary was computer-generated without any editorial revision. It is not official, has not been checked for accuracy, and is NOT citable.

Facts

The Plaintiff tripped and fell when her foot caught on a rise in the sidewalk while walking her dog. She alleged that the City of Santa Fe was negligent in maintaining the sidewalk, which caused her injuries and consequential damages. The Plaintiff also initially sued a neighbor, but the claims against him were resolved earlier in the proceedings (paras 1, 15).

Procedural History

• District Court, March 8, 2001: The court set the case for a non-jury trial with the Plaintiff's assent. At trial, the court dismissed the Plaintiff's case against the City at the close of her evidence, finding she failed to prove negligence, causation, and damages (paras 1, 3, 13-14).
• Court of Appeals, Remand: The Plaintiff's claims against the neighbor were resolved on summary judgment, which was not appealed. The case against the City proceeded to trial and was dismissed (para 1).

Parties' Submissions

• Plaintiff: Argued that she was entitled to a jury trial based on the neighbor's earlier jury demand and that the district court erred in dismissing her case against the City (paras 2, 4).
• City of Santa Fe (Defendant): Contended that the Plaintiff waived her right to a jury trial by failing to object to the non-jury trial setting and argued that the Plaintiff failed to meet her burden of proof on negligence, causation, and damages (paras 4, 12-13).

Legal Issues

• Did the Plaintiff waive her right to a jury trial by failing to object to the non-jury trial setting?
• Did the district court err in dismissing the Plaintiff's case for failure to prove negligence, causation, and damages?

Disposition

• The Court of Appeals affirmed the district court's dismissal of the Plaintiff's case (para 17).

Reasons

Per Wechsler J. (Robinson and Kennedy JJ. concurring):

• Waiver of Jury Trial: The Plaintiff waived her right to a jury trial by her conduct. Although the neighbor had filed a jury demand, the Plaintiff did not object when the court set the case for a non-jury trial during the pretrial conference. She also failed to raise the issue on the day of trial and only objected post-judgment. The court emphasized that allowing such objections after trial would undermine judicial economy and fairness (paras 3-12).

• Involuntary Dismissal: The district court properly dismissed the case under Rule 1-041(B) NMRA. The Plaintiff failed to prove that the City's negligence caused her injuries. The court weighed the evidence, including the Plaintiff's testimony and photographs, and found that the Plaintiff did not establish causation. The court could reasonably conclude that the fall was caused by the Plaintiff's own negligence in handling her dog rather than the sidewalk protrusion (paras 13-16).