## Facts

- Freddie L. Jackson signed a driver’s license application for his minor cousin, Charles Jackson.
- Charles’s mother was living and had custody; Freddie had neither custody nor guardianship and was not an authorized signer under Ark. Code Ann. § 27-16-702(a).
- Charles later collided with David Houchin while driving, and Houchin sued Charles for negligence and Freddie on the statutory imputed-liability theory.
- A jury returned a verdict for Houchin against both Charles and Freddie and awarded $11,088.55 plus costs.
- Freddie appealed, arguing that his lack of statutory authorization to sign the application barred liability.

## Issues

1. Whether Ark. Code Ann. § 27-16-702(b) imposes joint and several liability on a person who signed a minor’s license application even if that person was not authorized to sign under § 27-16-702(a).
2. Whether an unauthorized signer can avoid imputed liability by asserting the signature was legally ineffective because a custodial parent existed.

## Decision

- The Arkansas Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment against Freddie.
- The court held that § 27-16-702(b) imputes the minor’s negligence to the person who signed the application “regardless of whether” the signer was authorized under subsection (a).
- Because Freddie signed the application, he was jointly and severally liable with Charles for damages caused by Charles’s negligent driving.

## Legal Principles

- Under Ark. Code Ann. § 27-16-702(b), a minor driver’s negligence or willful misconduct is imputed to the person who signed the minor’s license application, and that signer is jointly and severally liable with the minor.
- Statutory liability under § 27-16-702(b) attaches based on the fact of signing the application, not on whether the signer was legally authorized under § 27-16-702(a).
- A signer may not avoid statutory obligations by relying on the signer’s own unauthorized act to defeat liability, where the statute expressly imposes liability on any signer.

## Conclusion

The court affirmed liability against an adult who signed a minor’s driver’s license application, holding that the statute imputes the minor’s negligent driving to any signer and imposes joint and several liability even when the signer lacked authorization to sign.


Jackson v. Houchin, 144 S.W.3d 764 (Ark. Ct. App. 2004)