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Schultz v. Ford Motor Co.2/21/2005
t has been said that "presumption" is one of the slipperiest members of the family of legal terms. John W. Strong, McCormick on Evidence § 342 (5th ed. 1999). "A presumption is an assumption of fact resulting from a rule of law that requires the fact to be assumed from another proven fact or group of facts. Stated differently, a presumption is a declaration of public policy that if a litigant presents evidence of a specified set of facts, then an additional fact will be presumed to exist." 12 Robert Lowell Miller, Jr., Indiana Practice, Indiana Evidence § 301.101 (2d ed. 1995). "A presumption is a doctrine of substantive law, not evidence." Tanford, § 7.01. Civil presumptions generally relieve the party with the burden of proof of the necessity of presenting evidence on an issue in order to withstand a directed verdict. Id. If uncontested, a presumption usually becomes conclusive. Presumptions are simultaneously governed by Evidence Rule 301, case law, and statutes, therefore, "this area of law is a nightmare." Id. at § 7.02.
The distinction between a presumption and an inference is perhaps best understood by noting that "a presumption is a deduction that the law requires the trier of fact to make if it finds a certain set of facts." Matter of Estate of Borom, 562 N.E.2d 772, 775 (Ind. Ct. App. 1990). Thus, a presumption differs from an inference, which the trier may or may not make according to his own conclusions drawn from the facts adduced at trial. Id. A presumption is mandatory, while an inference is permissive. Id.
Judge Robert Lowell Miller, Jr., in his treatise on Indiana Evidence, describes the difference between an inference and presumption as follows.
Inferences differ from presumptions in at least three particulars. First, presumptions are mandatory unless rebutted; the presumed fact must be taken as true in the absence of evidence to the contrary. Inferences are permissible, but never mandatory, when the evidence is being weighed; the trier of fact is not required to draw inferences.
Second, presumptions are not weighed in the sense evidence is weighed if contrary evidence is produced, although a presumption met by rebutting evidence may effectively become an inference under Rule 301. An inference remains in the case despite the presentation of contrary proof and may be weighed with all the other evidence.
Third, a presumption need not be based entirely upon logical probabilities; public policy, social convenience, safety or procedural convenience may lead to the creation of a presumption. An inference, however, must be logical. Inferences also must be based on evidence.
12 Miller, § 301.101 (footnotes omitted).
Under IC 34-20-5-1, once a manufacturer proves by a preponderance of the evidence that it has complied with a relevant safety standard, even a minimum standard such as FMVSS 216, "there is a rebuttable presumption that the product that caused the physical harm was not defective and that the manufacturer or seller of the product was not negligent." IC 34-20-5-1 (emphasis added). This presumption is mandatory and, unless rebutted, allows the conclusion that the manufacturer was not negligent. The governmental compliance presumption does not arise logically, but instead is a legislative fiction created to address the public policy concerns that manufacturers do not get adequate credit for complying with governmental standards. As such, we conclude that IC 34-20-5-1 creates a mandatory presumption and not a permissive inference.
In McClain, we analyzed the statutory language in IC 34-20-5-1 as a presumption and not an inference. Quoting our supreme court's discussion of presumptions generally, w
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