Civil Procedure Flashcards
A husband and wife were traveling in a car with the wife driving when they were in an accident with a truck. The accident occurred in a jurisdiction that followed the traditional rule as to joint and several liability among tortfeasors. The husband sued the truck driver in federal district court. The truck driver, contending that the wife was an indispensable party, filed a motion to dismiss the action because the husband did not join his wife as a party to the action.
How should the court rule on the truck driver’s motion?
The court should deny the truck driver’s motion because the wife is not “needed for just adjudication.” When deciding whether an absentee party is indispensable, the court considers a number of factors. However, the Supreme Court has held that a joint tortfeasor subject to joint and several liability is not a person needed for just adjudication. Because the wife here is a joint tortfeasor subject to joint and several liability, she is not an indispensable party in this case.
What does the Rules Enabling Act provide?
Under the Rules Enabling Act, a Federal Rule is valid if it deals with “practice or procedure” and does not “abridge, enlarge, or modify” a substantive right.
