09-3540 Mejia v. Cook County

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Civil Procedure
New trials

Where the district court employed the wrong standard in denying a motion for a new trial, the appropriate remedy is to remand for consideration using the correct standard, not reversal.

“In the end, the district court is in the best position to evaluate the evidence and determine whether the verdict was against the manifest weight; it heard the witnesses testify, saw the evidence presented, and gained a better appreciation of the nuances of the case than could be gleaned from a cold, written record. Smith v. Ne. Ill. Univ., 388 F.3d 559, 569 (7th Cir. 2004); Valbert v. Pass, 866 F.2d 237, 239 (7th Cir. 1989). We accordingly vacate the district court’s denial of Mejia’s motion for a new trial and remand the case for reconsideration under the proper standard of law.”

Vacated and Remanded.

09-3540 Mejia v. Cook County

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Lefkow, J., Kanne, J.

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