Borton & Sons, Inc. v. Novazone, Inc.

MEMORANDUM

Novazone, Inc. d/b/a Purfresh, Inc. (No-vazone) appeals the district court’s award of prejudgment interest, following a jury trial, to Borton & Sons, Inc. (Borton). Borton cross-appeals the district court’s order denying its motion for attorney fees and costs. As the facts and procedural history are familiar to the parties, we do not recite them here except as necessary to explain our disposition. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm in part and reverse in part.

In Washington, a court may award prejudgment interest on a liquidated claim, i.e., “where the evidence furnishes data which, if believed, makes it possible to compute the amount with exactness, without reliance on opinion or discretion.” Scoccolo Constr., Inc. ex rel. Curb One, Inc. v. City of Renton, 158 Wash.2d 506 , 145 P.3d 371, 377 (2006). Novazone contends that the district court erred in awarding prejudgment interest because the jury did not compute its award with an exact measure, but instead relied upon its discretion. We agree. The jury relied upon its own “determination of reasonableness” in calculating Borton’s damages. Kiewit-Grice v. State, 77 Wash.App. 867 , 895 P.2d 6, 9…