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Hector Emilio Reyes-Cardona, et al. v. J.C. Penney Co.

694 F.2d 894 (1982)

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Hector Emilio Reyes-Cardona, et al. v. J.C. Penney Co.

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
694 F.2d 894 (1982)

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Facts

J. C. Penney Co. (defendant) filed a debt-collection suit in Puerto Rico against Hector L. Reyes-Diaz (Hector Jr.) and the woman who J. C. Penney believed to be his wife, Isabel Diaz de Reyes (Isabel) (plaintiff). However, Isabel was not Hector Jr.’s s wife; she was Hector Jr.’s mother. J. C. Penney wrongly assumed that Isabel was Hector Jr.’s wife based on the credit application submitted by Hector Jr., which identified Isabel as a person authorized to use his credit. As soon as J. C. Penney learned that Isabel was not Hector Jr.’s wife, J. C. Penney dismissed the suit. Isabel and her husband, Hector Emilio Reyes-Cardona (Hector Sr.) (plaintiff), subsequently filed a diversity action in United States federal district court, seeking damages against J. C. Penney. Isabel and Hector Sr. alleged that when Hector Sr. learned about the suit against Isabel, he had a mental breakdown and required emergency psychiatric intervention. J. C. Penney moved for summary judgment, admitting its error but arguing that its mistake did not give rise to liability for damages under the law of Puerto Rico. The district court agreed and granted summary judgment. Isabel and Hector Sr. appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Breyer, J.)

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