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Oliver v. Stimson Lumber Co.12/22/1999
, there was no duty on the part of the Defendants to preserve the evidence, thus any negligence action would fail under any circumstances.
Nonetheless, the Olivers urge this Court to adopt the torts of negligent and intentional spoliation of evidence. Stimson contends that we need not decide whether to recognize either tort because the Olivers could not prove such a claim. As for Liberty Northwest, it asserts that the Olivers' complaint fails to state a claim against it upon which relief could be granted.
This is a case of first impression in Montana. However, we have previously upheld an award of exemplary damages against an owner of a vehicle who had destroyed critical physical evidence at the scene of an accident. This destruction of evidence resulted in the inability of the officer to conduct visibility and illumination tests as part of his investigation and determination of fault. In that situation, we stated that an identifiable basis for actual damages exists, which arises from the plaintiff's deprivation of the illumination tests. See Lauman v. Lee (1981), 192 Mont. 84, 89, 626 P.2d 830, 833.
Relevant evidence is critical to the search for the truth. The intentional or negligent destruction or spoliation of evidence cannot be condoned and threatens the very integrity of our judicial system. There can be no truth, fairness, or justice in a civil action where relevant evidence has been destroyed before trial. Historically, our judicial system has fostered methods and safeguards to insure that relevant evidence is preserved. Ultimately, the responsibility rests with both the trial and appellate courts to insure that the parties to the litigation have a fair opportunity to present their claims or defenses.
Remedies already exist for parties to an action who have suffered a loss as a result of the spoliation of evidence by another party. See Cedars-Sinai Med. Ctr. v. Superior Court (Cal. 1998), 954 P.2d 511, 517-18; Stefan Rubin, Tort Reform: A Call for Florida to Scale Back its Independent Tort for the Spoliation of Evidence, 51 Fla. L. Rev. 345, 357-59 (1999); Montana Rules of Civil Procedure. We see no reason to recognize a new tort theory to provide relief to litigants when evidence is intentionally or negligently destroyed by a party to the litigation. Trial judges are well equipped under the Montana Rules of Civil Procedure to address the problem as it occurs and deal with it accordingly, even entering default when the circumstances justify such relief.
When evidence is in the possession of a third party, however, the various sanctions available to the trial judge are inapplicable and other considerations arise. For instance, the property in question may be owned by the third party. A property owner normally has the right to control and dispose of his property as he sees fit. The owner of the property may legitimately question what right a plaintiff has to direct control over such property. Yet, the importance of evidence preservation and the critical importance it plays in the civil justice system cannot be ignored.
We are also mindful that some courts that have carefully considered this question have determined that there is no need to recognize the spoliation torts since existing remedies suffice.
In the final analysis, however, we have concluded that it is necessary to recognize the tort of spoliation of evidence, which may be negligent or intentional, as an independent cause of action with respect to third parties who destroy evidence. In doing so, we are sensitive to the legitimate interests and rights of third parties who are in the possession of such evidence. Thus, we have attempted to craft a bala
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