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WPI 45.24 Special Verdict Form—Personal Injury/ Wrongful Death—Multiple Defendants—No Contribut...

6 WAPRAC WPI 45.24Washington Practice Series TMWashington Pattern Jury Instructions--Civil

6 Wash. Prac., Wash. Pattern Jury Instr. Civ. WPI 45.24 (7th ed.)

Washington Practice Series TM

Washington Pattern Jury Instructions--Civil

April 2022 Update

Washington State Supreme Court Committee on Jury Instructions

Part V. Multiple Parties and Pleadings—Forms of Verdicts

Chapter 45. Forms of Verdicts

B. Verdict Forms for Cases Under The Tort Reform Act

WPI 45.24 Special Verdict Form—Personal Injury/ Wrongful Death—Multiple Defendants—No Contributory Negligence—No “Empty Chairs”

(Insert caption. See WPI 45.21.)

We, the jury, answer the questions submitted by the court as follows:

QUESTION 1:

Were any of the defendants negligent?

(Answer “yes” or “no” after the name of each defendant.)

ANSWER:	Yes	No
Defendant (name):
Defendant (name):
[Defendant (name):		]

(DIRECTION: If you answered “no” to Question 1 as to each defendant, sign this verdict form. If you answered “yes” to Question 1 as to any defendant, answer Question 2.)

QUESTION 2:

Was such negligence a proximate cause of [injury] [damage] to the plaintiff?

(Answer “yes” or “no” after the name of each defendant found negligent by you in Question 1.)

ANSWER:	Yes	No
Defendant (name):
Defendant (name):
[Defendant (name):		]

(DIRECTION: If you answered “no” to Question 2 as to all defendants, sign this verdict form. If you answered “yes” to Question 2 as to any defendant, answer Question 3.)

QUESTION 3:	What do you find to be the plaintiff's amount of damages?
	ANSWER: $

(DIRECTION: If you answered Question 3 with any amount of money, answer Question 4. If you found no damages in Question 3, sign this verdict form.)

QUESTION 4:

Assume that 100% represents the total combined negligence that proximately caused the plaintiff's [injury] [damage]. What percentage of this 100% is attributable to each defendant whose negligence was found by you in Question 2 to have been a proximate cause of the [injury] [damage] to the plaintiff? Your total must equal 100%.

	ANSWER:
	To defendant (name):	%
	To defendant (name):	%
	[To defendant (name):	%]
	TOTAL:	100%

(DIRECTION: Sign this verdict form and notify the bailiff.).

DATE:
	Presiding Juror

NOTE ON USE

Use this verdict form for personal injury or wrongful death actions if there are multiple defendants, there is no issue of contributory negligence or assumption of risk, and there are no other entities that have been identified as allegedly being at fault for the plaintiff's damages.

Question 3 in this special verdict form does not separate any particular elements of damages. If the parties need to have the jury separately itemize damages, such as for past economic, future economic, and noneconomic damages, then refer to WPI 45.20 (Special Verdict Form—Personal Injury/Wrongful Death—Single Defendant—No Contributory Negligence—No “Empty Chairs”—Separate Damage Elements) and that instruction's Note on Use and Comment.

Use WPI 1.11 (Concluding Instruction—For Special Verdict Form) with this verdict form.

Use WPI 41.04 (Fault to be Apportioned) with this verdict form.

Use bracketed material as applicable.

COMMENT

RCW 4.22.070(1) and RCW 4.56.260.

See the Comments to WPI 45.20 (General Verdict Forms—Personal Injury/Wrongful Death—Single Defendant—No Contributory Negligence—No “Empty Chairs”—Separate Damage Element) and WPI 45.21 (Special Verdict Form—Personal Injury/Wrongful Death—Single Defendant—No Contributory Negligence—“Empty Chairs”).

See the Comment to WPI 41.04 (Fault to be Apportioned) for cases discussing apportionment of damages under RCW 4.22.070.

[Current as of September 2018.]

End of Document