Erickson v. Irving
Florida Court of Appeals
16 So.3d 868 (2009)
Sindoni rode along after Long borrowed Irving's car keys to attend a scotch-tasting event and later drive to another bar; Sindoni had refused an offer to drive himself and was killed when Long, driving drunk, collided with a dump truck. At trial, the court allowed Long and Irving (defendants) to raise a joint-enterprise defense imputing Long's negligence to Sindoni, and the jury allocated 35 percent fault each to Long and Sindoni, resulting in a zero-dollar award for Erickson (plaintiff), Sindoni's estate representative, against Long.
Whether the joint-enterprise defense applies if there is an agreement to enter into an undertaking, a community of interest in the objects and purposes to be accomplished in the undertaking, and equal authority to control the undertaking.