CA1: pain and suffering availability (but not reasonableness) should be certified

Muniz-Olivari v. Stiefel Laboratories, No. 06-1944.  This is a fairly routine breach-of-employment contract case (based on an oral promise). In fact, it looks like a 1L contracts example.  The plaintiff won on most issues, except, the First notes that the issue of whether “damages for mental anguish and suffering are recoverable under Puerto Rico law in breach of employment contract actions should be certified to the Supreme Court of Puerto Rico.”  But, the First says that the jury’s findings on how much they suffered were not so high as to require a remittitur (and the First looks to analogous caselaw to make that determination).    As a matter of procedure, the First directs the District Court to certify the issue, and formulate the question.

The District Court’s instructions on burdens of proof and weighing the evidence were somewhat muddled, but the First says that they are good enough.