Woods v. Walker & Corsa

OPINION OF THE COURT

Theodore Diamond, J.

For purposes of this opinion, the jury found defendant *661negligent, and plaintiff guilty of culpable conduct contributing to the damages. CPLR 4401 motions regarding these answers were denied. The jury answer to question 5, apportionment, was 2.5% plaintiff and 97.5% defendant, by a vote of 5-1.

Because the allocation is "contrary to the weight of the evidence,” defendant moves to increase plaintiff’s share of the blame, or alternatively for a new trial. How to proceed? While CPLR is replete with references to verdicts, and jury answers are "special…