Kingston v. Boley

                                ENTRY ORDER

                      SUPREME COURT DOCKET NO. 89-623

                            DECEMBER TERM, 1990


James Kingston, as Administrator  }          APPEALED FROM:
of the Estate of Holly Jean       }
Kingston, deceased                }
                                  }
     v.                           }          Chittenden Superior Court
                                  }
                                  }
Todd Boley                        }          DOCKET NO. S623-89CnC


             In the above entitled cause the Clerk will enter:

     This interlocutory appeal involves a wrongful death action by
plaintiff, James Kingston, administrator of the estate of his daughter,
Holly Jean Kingston, against defendant Todd Boley.  Holly Jean Kingston was
twenty-one years of age when she died.  Defendant appeals the trial court's
denial of his motion for judgment on the pleadings and for dismissal of a
portion of plaintiff's complaint seeking damages for loss of love and
companionship and destruction of the parent-child relationship.  He argues
that such damages are recoverable only with respect to a "minor child,"
citing 14 V.S.A. { 1492(b).

     In Clymer v. Webster, No. 88-631, slip op. at 16 (Vt. June 7, 1991), we
held that the parents of an adult child may recover loss of companionship
damages under the Wrongful Death Act.  Because of the posture of the case,
Clymer did not attempt to define the elements of recoverable damages.  We
have not addressed, for example, whether the elements of damages are the
same for an adult child as for a minor child in view of the specific
language of { 1492(b).

     This case is in the same posture as Clymer, and the question is whether
the motion to dismiss should have been granted.  It is clear under Clymer
that the refusal to dismiss was proper.  In reaching this conclusion, we
again defer any specific ruling on the elements of damages recoverable.  It
would be inappropriate to address this question without guidance from the
trial court.

     The order denying defendant's motion for judgment on the pleadings is
affirmed.


                                   BY THE COURT:




                                   Ernest W. Gibson III, Associate Justice



[ ]  Publish                       John A. Dooley, Associate Justice

[ ]  Do Not Publish
                                   James L. Morse, Associate Justice

                                   _______________________________________
                                   Denise R. Johnson, Associate Justice


                                   Albert W. Barney, Chief Justice (Ret.),
                                   Specially Assigned