Professional Hockey Corp. v. World Hockey Assn.

Professional Hockey Corporation (PHC) sued World Hockey Association (WHA) for failure to pay certain promissory notes. The trial court directed a verdict in favor of PHC for the sum of $178,170 plus interest at 8 percent. Concurrently WHA brought a cross-action against PHC claiming breach of fiduciary duty and damages. At the conclusion of the cross-complainant’s (WHA) case in chief, the trial court granted cross-defendant PHC’s motion for nonsuit upon the grounds WHA failed to establish PHC owed any fiduciary duty to WHA and therefore had failed to establish a breach of fiduciary duty. The trial court could not find any damages sustained by WHA, assuming arguendo a breach of duty. Cross-complainant WHA appeals.

We conclude the trial court properly granted the nonsuit. The cross-complainant by its own evidence showed a ratification of the very actions upon which it sought to base its claim of violation of a fiduciary duty.

Facts

The facts presented to the jury must be scrutinized carefully in light of this fundamental rule: A “ ‘nonsuit in a jury case . . . may be granted only when disregarding conflicting evidence, giving to the [cross-complainant’s] evidence all the…