Mobil Oil Corp. v. Ellender
968 S.W.2d 917 · Texas Supreme Court · 1998
Facts
Eli Ellender, a contract worker, developed leukemia and died after exposure to benzene at Mobil's facilities. His family sued Mobil, and a jury found Mobil grossly negligent, awarding compensatory and punitive damages. The court of appeals affirmed liability but modified the punitive damages calculation and denied Mobil a settlement credit from prior settlements.
Issue
The Supreme Court considered whether there was legally sufficient evidence of gross negligence for punitive damages, if the court of appeals properly reviewed the punitive damages' factual sufficiency, and if the court of appeals erred in recalculating punitive damages and denying Mobil a settlement credit.
Holding
The Court affirmed that legally sufficient evidence supported Mobil's gross negligence and the court of appeals' factual sufficiency review. However, it reversed the court of appeals' erroneous addition of $91,555.58 to punitive damages and its denial of Mobil's settlement credit. The case was remanded for the trial court to allow the Ellenders to prove any allocation of the settlement between actual and punitive damages.
Rule
Gross negligence requires an extreme degree of risk and subjective awareness with conscious indifference; corporate liability can arise through vice principals or corporate policy. For settlement credits, a non-settling defendant is entitled to a dollar-for-dollar credit for the entire settlement amount unless the settling party tenders a valid agreement allocating between actual and punitive damages before judgment.
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