Ewing v. County of Santa Barbara
Cynthia Marie Ewing was severely injured in an automobile accident. She sued Santa Barbara County (the County), alleging that the accident had been caused by the dangerous condition of a public roadway. The County moved for summary judgment. In support of its motion it offered the expert declarations of two traffic engineers who opined that the portion of the roadway where the accident occurred did not constitute a dangerous condition or contribute to the cause of the accident. Ewing opposed the motion by submitting the declarations of two experts which came to opposite conclusions. The trial court granted the County's objections to virtually all of Ewing's experts' opinions as speculative and lacking in foundation. An objection to all of the opinions stated in one of the declarations was also sustained on the ground that the declarant had failed to demonstrate he was qualified to render opinions on the relevant issues. The court accordingly granted summary judgment in favor of the County. Ewing now appeals from that judgment. Because the case is essentially a "battle of the experts," its resolution turns on the parties' respective expert declarations. Court conclude the court did not abuse its discretion in sustaining the County's objections to the opinions of Ewing's experts, which were speculative, lacking in foundation, and which ignored undisputed facts that fatally undermined their conclusions. The court also properly exercised its discretion in finding that one of Ewing's proffered experts was not qualified to render the opinion stated in his declaration. Accordingly, Court affirm the grant of summary judgment in favor of the County.
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