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Case No. 19-0156

Manatt's Inc.
v.
Tanam Real Estate, LLC and Joseph J. Manatt

Appellee

Manatt's Inc.

Appellant

Tanam Real Estate, LLC and Joseph J. Manatt

Attorney for the Appellee

John E. Lande and Bryan P. O'Neill

Attorney for the Appellant

Mark E. Weinhardt and David N. Fautsch

Court of Appeals

Court of Appeals Opinion

Opinion Number:
19-0156
Date Published:
Sep 02, 2020
Summary

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Michael D. Huppert, Judge.  AFFIRMED ON APPEAL AND CROSS-APPEAL.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Mullins and Ahlers, JJ.  Opinion by Mullins, J.  (11 pages)

            Joseph Manatt (Joe) and Tanam Real Estate, LLC, (Tanam) appeal a district court order granting a new trial.  Manatt’s Inc. cross-appeals, arguing the district court should have limited the new trial’s scope.  OPINION HOLDS: On our review of the record, we find there was substantial evidence to support the district court’s denial of Joe’s and Tanam’s motion for directed verdict on the breach-of-fiduciary-duty claim.  We also find the answers provided on the verdict form were inconsistent and cannot be harmonized in accordance with the evidence presented at trial.  Finally, the breach-of-fiduciary-duty and damages issues are not so distinct and separable to warrant retrial solely on damages. 

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