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Full-Text Articles in Law

Longshoreman-Shipowner-Stevedore: The Circle Of Liability, Harney B. Stover, Jr. Jan 1963

Longshoreman-Shipowner-Stevedore: The Circle Of Liability, Harney B. Stover, Jr.

Michigan Law Review

It is universally recognized that in the past two decades the United States Supreme Court has substantially revised the law under which seamen, longshoremen and harbor workers (or their survivors) may recover damages for personal injury and death. One of the more recent and most authoritative texts in the field of admiralty and maritime law devotes an entire chapter, 147 pages in length, to the subject of the rights of seamen and maritime workers (or their survivors) of recovery for injury and death. The introduction to that chapter likens the Court's rewriting of the law in this field to a …


The Casual Relation Issue In Negligence Law, Leon Green Mar 1962

The Casual Relation Issue In Negligence Law, Leon Green

Michigan Law Review

Two significant legal studies of "Causation"-one English, one American-have been recently published. The English book brings to the subject more scholarly learning and a more comprehensive examination of its literature than any other book that has been written. The authors are devoted disciples of causation principles and make a stout defense of the causation concept as the structural core of negligence law. They examine the philosophical, common sense and semantic backgrounds of causal concepts as the basis of legal liability, find that they have merit, and launch extended, and sometimes devastating, attack upon theories that question their adequacy, though in …


Workermen's Compensation-Third-Party Actions-Employer's Recovery On An Implied Warranty, Philip Sotiroff Jan 1962

Workermen's Compensation-Third-Party Actions-Employer's Recovery On An Implied Warranty, Philip Sotiroff

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff seeks to recover the amount of a workmen's compensation award paid to his employee as a result of injuries received when an exhaust valve malfunctioned causing a press which the employee was operating to double-trip. Defendant, an independent parts supplier who had sold plaintiff the valve, moved to dismiss the complaint because of insufficiency of evidence to sustain the verdict and plaintiff's legal incapacity to sue. On appeal from an order denying the motion to dismiss, held, affirmed, one judge dissenting. Plaintiff has two independent causes of action, one against the manufacturer on an assigned negligence theory, and …


Contacts - Subrogation - Partial Subrogation Of A Cause Of Action For Personal Injuries, Jerome M. Salle Jun 1961

Contacts - Subrogation - Partial Subrogation Of A Cause Of Action For Personal Injuries, Jerome M. Salle

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, an incorporated home for the aged, provided all essential medical care to one of its residents under the provisions of a life-care contract between it and the resident. On the basis of a contract clause which purported to subrogate plaintiff to the right of the resident to recover medical expenses caused by the negligence of third parties, plaintiff brought an action to recover certain medical expenses incurred from the party who was allegedly responsible for the injuries and death of the resident. The trial court sustained a demurrer to the complaint for failure to state a cause of action …


Concurrent Causation In Insurance Contracts, William Conant Brewer Jr. Jun 1961

Concurrent Causation In Insurance Contracts, William Conant Brewer Jr.

Michigan Law Review

A great deal of work and thought has been devoted to concurrent causation problems in the field of torts. Less attention has been paid to the insurance cases, and no serious effort has been made to formulate the separate rules applicable to them. It is the thesis of this article that concurrent causation problems which arise under an insurance contract must be handled somewhat differently from those which arise in connection with tort litigation, and that the tendency to borrow rules of law from the larger tort field and apply them to the smaller volume of insurance cases can only …


Bills And Notes-Payees By Impersonation And By Assumption Of A Name-Drawer's Intent And Commercial Policy, Stuart S. Gunckel S. Ed. Jun 1961

Bills And Notes-Payees By Impersonation And By Assumption Of A Name-Drawer's Intent And Commercial Policy, Stuart S. Gunckel S. Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Consider the following scheme for fraudulently obtaining money: A, a stranger to D, personally appears before D, represents himself as B and requests a loan. There is an existing person named B. For D's security a mortgage is produced in the name of B, but it has actually been penned by A. A check of the land records by D verifies that the land described in the mortgage is in fact owned by B. D, having satisfied himself as to the existence of B, draws a check payable to the …


Stason, Estep And Pierce: Atoms And The Law, Harry Kalven, Jr. Jan 1961

Stason, Estep And Pierce: Atoms And The Law, Harry Kalven, Jr.

Michigan Law Review

A Review of Atoms and the Law. By E. Blythe Stason, Samuel D. Estep and William J. Pierce. [Parts I and II* Pp. 1-846]


Sales - Implied Warranty - Privity Of Contract As A Prerequisite To Recovery From Manufacturer, John L. Peschel S. Ed. Jan 1961

Sales - Implied Warranty - Privity Of Contract As A Prerequisite To Recovery From Manufacturer, John L. Peschel S. Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff sustained injuries in the course of his employment when a defective abrasive wheel, while being used in its intended manner, exploded in his face. The abrasive wheel was purchased by plaintiff's employer directly from the manufacturer. Plaintiff sought recovery from the manufacturer on two grounds: negligence in the manufacture of the abrasive wheel and breach of implied warranty for fitness of purpose. The negligence issue was submitted to the jury, which returned a verdict adverse to the plaintiff. The manufacturer's demurrer to the cause of action based upon implied warranty was sustained by the trial court. On appeal from …


Negligence - Res Ipsa Loquitur - Doctine Applied Although Damage Causing Instrumentality Within The Exclusive Control Of Defendant At The Time Of The Damage, Kenneth Laing Jr. Nov 1960

Negligence - Res Ipsa Loquitur - Doctine Applied Although Damage Causing Instrumentality Within The Exclusive Control Of Defendant At The Time Of The Damage, Kenneth Laing Jr.

Michigan Law Review

Seven months after defendant had installed a washbowl in a bathroom in plaintiff's house, the house was damaged by water when one of the pipes became disconnected from a faucet. During the two weeks immediately prior to the damage the house was unoccupied, but inspections were made every two or three days by plaintiff's employee. Plaintiff sued defendant to recover for the damage caused by defendant's alleged negligence in connecting the water pipe to the washbowl. In a trial to the court, the evidence tended to eliminate other possible causes of the disconnection, such as rough use or manufacturing fault. …


Hart & Honoré: Causation In The Law, Luke K. Cooperrider Apr 1960

Hart & Honoré: Causation In The Law, Luke K. Cooperrider

Michigan Law Review

A Review of CAUSATION IN THE LAW. By H. L. A. Hart and A. M. Honore.


Municipal Corporations- Tort Immunity - Liability For Personal Injuries Caused By Nuisance Maintained By City, James Hourihan Feb 1960

Municipal Corporations- Tort Immunity - Liability For Personal Injuries Caused By Nuisance Maintained By City, James Hourihan

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, while in the bathhouse of a municipally owned and operated swimming pool, was injured by a shock received from an electric hair dryer. In sustaining plaintiff's claim against the city for damages, the trial court recognized liability for personal injuries caused by a nuisance created and maintained by a city as an exception to the common law doctrine of municipal immunity from tort liability. On appeal, held, reversed. The nuisance exception from a municipality's common law immunity extends only to injuries to real property occasioned by a municipally created and maintained nuisance. City of Decatur v. Parham, …


Admiralty - Unseaworthiness - Recovery For Injuries Resulting From Condition Arising After Commencement Of The Voyage, John L. Peschel Dec 1959

Admiralty - Unseaworthiness - Recovery For Injuries Resulting From Condition Arising After Commencement Of The Voyage, John L. Peschel

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a member of the crew of a fishing vessel, sustained injuries while disembarking when he slipped on a slimy substance on the ship railing. In an action brought against the shipowner, the seaman sought recovery on three alternative grounds: first, under the Jones Act based upon negligence; second, under general maritime law based upon the obligation of the shipowner to furnish a seaworthy vessel; third, under general maritime law for maintenance and cure. Judgment was entered pursuant to a verdict limiting the seaman to recovery for maintenance and cure. On the seaman's appeal from the adverse verdict on the …


Green: Traffic Victims. Tort Law And Insurance, Spencer L. Kimball Apr 1959

Green: Traffic Victims. Tort Law And Insurance, Spencer L. Kimball

Michigan Law Review

A Review of Traffic Victims. Tort Law and Insurance. By Leon Green.


Torts - Mental Distress - Recovery Against Original Wrongdoer For Fear Of Cancer Caused By Subsequent Medical Advice, Paul Gerding Mar 1959

Torts - Mental Distress - Recovery Against Original Wrongdoer For Fear Of Cancer Caused By Subsequent Medical Advice, Paul Gerding

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, suffering from bursitis in the right shoulder, received X-ray treatments from defendant physicians. Subsequent thereto, plaintiff's shoulder began to itch, scab, and blister for several years, a condition diagnosed as chronic radiodermatitis caused by the X-ray therapy. Approximately two years after the treatments, plaintiff was examined by a dermatologist who advised her to have her shoulder checked every six months because the area might become cancerous. Plaintiff then developed a severe "cancerphobia," an apprehension that she would ultimately develop cancer from the radiation burn. Plaintiff brought a malpractice suit against defendant physicians, seeking recovery for the physical injury and …


Insurance - Settlement - Extent Of Insurer's Liability For Wrongful Refusal To Settle When Subsequent Judgment Exceeds Policy Limits, Michael B. Lewiston Mar 1959

Insurance - Settlement - Extent Of Insurer's Liability For Wrongful Refusal To Settle When Subsequent Judgment Exceeds Policy Limits, Michael B. Lewiston

Michigan Law Review

The insured, while driving a borrowed truck, injured plaintiff and his wife. Defendant, insurer on a policy which contained liability limits of $10,000 per person and $20,000 per accident, was notified of the accident but refused to defend the subsequent suit against the insured on the ground that plaintiff's claim was not covered by the policy. Defendant refused an offer to settle the claim for $4,000 solely on the basis of its belief as to coverage, though it was aware that the insured was financially unable to effect his own settlement. A judgment of $25,000 for a plaintiff and $1,250 …


Insurance - Recovery - Delay Of Insurance Company In Rejecting Application For Insurance, Harry D. Krause S.Ed. Feb 1958

Insurance - Recovery - Delay Of Insurance Company In Rejecting Application For Insurance, Harry D. Krause S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, designated as beneficiary by deceased life insurance applicant, sued defendant life insurance company in assumpsit. Deceased, a combat pilot in the Korean War, had applied for one of defendant's policies, passed the medical examination, and made several premium payments on the policy. After the applicant was killed in combat defendant refused payment, contending that it had never accepted the risk but that it had responded to the application with a counter offer containing an aviation waiver. Because of ·the applicant's frequent change of address and his early death this proposal had never been communicated to him. On appeal from …


Municipal Corporations - Tort Liability - Liability For Torts Committed By Municipal Employees In Exercise Of Governmental Functions, Ralph E. Boches Jan 1958

Municipal Corporations - Tort Liability - Liability For Torts Committed By Municipal Employees In Exercise Of Governmental Functions, Ralph E. Boches

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff sued the Town of Cocoa Beach for damages for the alleged wrongful death of her husband. Plaintiff's husband had died of smoke suffocation after being locked in a jail which was left unattended by the city jailor. The lower court dismissed plaintiff's complaint. On appeal, held, reversed. A person injured by the negligence of a municipal employee acting within the scope of his employment may recover against the municipal corporation. Hargrove v. Town of Cocoa Beach, (Fla. 1957) 96 S. (2d) 130.


Limitations Of Action - Applicable Statute - Third-Party Injury Provision Agreed To By Contractor Subject To Contract Limitation Only, Walter L. Adams Dec 1957

Limitations Of Action - Applicable Statute - Third-Party Injury Provision Agreed To By Contractor Subject To Contract Limitation Only, Walter L. Adams

Michigan Law Review

More than two years following an accident in which they sustained personal injuries when their car fell into defendant's excavation, plaintiffs filed a diversity action in a federal court stating inter alia a cause of action based upon a third-party beneficiary contract entered into by defendant street contractor and the City of Philadelphia for which he was working. The contract provided in essence that defendant alone would be liable for damage sustained by any third party "irrespective of whether or not such injuries ... be due to negligence or the inherent nature of the work." The district court dismissed the …


Negligence - Damages - Mental Anguish From Witnessing Peril Of Third Party, Mark Shaevsky Dec 1957

Negligence - Damages - Mental Anguish From Witnessing Peril Of Third Party, Mark Shaevsky

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiffs (husband, wife, and three children) incurred physical injuries and a fourth child was burned to death in an automobile collision with the defendant's vehicle. Plaintiffs claimed compensation for mental anguish sustained from witnessing the death of the child. Defendant's motion to strike the allegations of mental suffering, held, granted. Defendant owes no legal duty to protect plaintiffs from mental suffering caused by viewing another in peril. Lessard v. Tarca, (Conn. Super. 1957) 133 A. (2d) 625.


Workmen's Compensation - Federal Employers' Liability Act - Basis Of Liability Not Common Law Negligence, Robert L. Knauss S.Ed. Nov 1957

Workmen's Compensation - Federal Employers' Liability Act - Basis Of Liability Not Common Law Negligence, Robert L. Knauss S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Petitioner, a laborer in a railroad section gang, was assigned to burn weeds near a railroad track. He was injured when he fell into a culvert as he was trying to escape from smoke and flames which had been fanned by a passing train. A jury in the Circuit Court of St. Louis awarded damages under the Federal Employers' Liability Act (FELA). The Supreme Court of Missouri reversed upon the ground that the evidence was not sufficient to support a finding of the railroad's liability, and the case should not have been allowed to go to a jury. On certiorari …


Torts - Guest Act - Negligent Conduct Of The Driver, William K. Muir Jr. Jun 1957

Torts - Guest Act - Negligent Conduct Of The Driver, William K. Muir Jr.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff was a gratuitous passenger in an automobile driven by defendant. Defendant, intending to coast to his destination, turned off the ignition, removed the key, and placed it in his pocket. The removal of the key caused the steering gear to lock, and defendant was unable to avoid a collision with a tree. Plaintiff suffered injuries and brought suit. Evidence was adduced to show that in defendant's type of automobile the steering wheel was so constructed as to lock upon removal of the key. Testimony revealed that defendant understood the general operation of the lock, but that the particular mechanism …


Workmen's Compensation - Federal Employers' Liability Act - Coverage Under 1939 Amendment, Robert J. Hoerner May 1957

Workmen's Compensation - Federal Employers' Liability Act - Coverage Under 1939 Amendment, Robert J. Hoerner

Michigan Law Review

In 1956 the Supreme Court handed down two decisions interpreting the 1939 Amendment to the Federal Employers' Liability Act which substantially extended the act's coverage. The purpose of this short comment is to examine this extension and its impact on the perennial controversy between advocates of the FELA on the one hand and workmen's compensation on the other.


Torts - Federal Tort Claims Act - Liability Of United States For Negligence Of Government Firemen, James M. Porter S.Ed. May 1957

Torts - Federal Tort Claims Act - Liability Of United States For Negligence Of Government Firemen, James M. Porter S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff brought suit under the Federal Tort Claims Act against the United States for damages resulting from the negligence of the United States Forest Service in combating a fire that destroyed plaintiff's property. The Forest Service had entered into an agreement with the State of Washington to prevent and suppress any fires in the area in which plaintiff's land was situated. The federal district court dismissed the complaint for failure to state a cause of action and the court of appeals affirmed. On certiorari, to the United States Supreme Court, held, judgment vacated and case remanded to the district …


Aviation Law - Tort Liability For Damage To Persons Or Property On The Ground - Res Ipsa Loquitur, Allan L. Bioff Apr 1957

Aviation Law - Tort Liability For Damage To Persons Or Property On The Ground - Res Ipsa Loquitur, Allan L. Bioff

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff's fishing vessel was struck and sunk by a practice bomb released from a Marine Corps aircraft. An action was brought against the government under the Federal Tort Claims Act. Plaintiff could produce no proof of negligence on the part of the government. Held, recovery allowed. The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur is applicable. Goodwin v. United States, (E.D. N.C. 1956) 141 F. Supp. 445.


Master And Servant - Independent Contractor - Inherent Danger Exception, Jerome K. Walsh, Jr. S.Ed. Mar 1957

Master And Servant - Independent Contractor - Inherent Danger Exception, Jerome K. Walsh, Jr. S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Defendant was a home-owner whose home was fumigated by an independent contractor. Plaintiff was the administrator of the estate of a water softener service man, who entered the home and was overcome by the cyanide gas used in the operation. It was agreed by the parties that the contractor was negligent in failing to lock all entrances to the home, and in not posting warnings at all entrances. Plaintiffs request to charge the jury that the work was inherently dangerous was refused. The court instructed the jury to determine whether or not the defendant had used due care in selecting …


Torts - Parent And Child-Doctrine Of Parental Immunity, Julian J. Linde S.Ed. Jan 1957

Torts - Parent And Child-Doctrine Of Parental Immunity, Julian J. Linde S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a minor, sustained injuries in a collision which occurred while he was riding in a car owned and driven by defendant, his father. The complaint alleged that defendant was guilty of willful and wanton misconduct, consisting of speeding on a wet road on a foggy night and of running a stop light. A motion to dismiss on the ground that the suit was contrary to public policy was sustained. On appeal, held, reversed. The doctrine of parental immunity is inapplicable to cases of willful and wanton misconduct. Nudd v Matsoukas, (III. 1956) 131 N.E. (2d) 525.


Torts - Guest Statute - Carpools, Ross Kipka S.Ed. Jan 1957

Torts - Guest Statute - Carpools, Ross Kipka S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a passenger, and defendant's decedent, the driver on the day in question, were two of six members of a carpool, each of whom drove every six.th day from the town where they all lived to the place of their common employment, thereby effecting a saving to each of approximately five dollars per week. As a result of a collision due to ordinary negligence of the driver, plaintiff was injured and sued for damages, alleging that he was not a guest passenger. The court submitted to the jury the question of whether plaintiff was a passenger for hire or a …


Negligence - Breach Of Duty - Liability Of Telephone Company For Failure To Relay Fire Alarm, Cyril Moscow S.Ed. Dec 1956

Negligence - Breach Of Duty - Liability Of Telephone Company For Failure To Relay Fire Alarm, Cyril Moscow S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Upon discovering a fire within his business building, plaintiff immediately went to the telephone and dialed the operator. After telling her his address and requesting that she call the fire department, he left the telephone to fight the fire. The message was not transmitted. When the fire department finally arrived in response to an alarm by a neighbor, the fire was out of control and the entire building was destroyed. Plaintiff sought damages, alleging that the telephone company held itself out to the public as willing to convey messages in case of emergency, and that failure to transmit his message …


Negligence - Duty Of Care - Duration Of Status Of "Driver" For Puropses Of Guest Statute, George Kircos Nov 1956

Negligence - Duty Of Care - Duration Of Status Of "Driver" For Puropses Of Guest Statute, George Kircos

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiffs were guests riding in defendant's automobile. Defendant stepped out of the vehicle leaving the motor running, the hand brake unset, and the automatic shift in neutral position. A departing passenger brushed against the gear lever and started the vehicle which struck a wall causing injuries to the plaintiffs. On appeal from judgment adverse to the plaintiffs, held, reversed. Defendant may be held liable for ordinary negligence. California's "guest" statute limiting guests to recovery for injuries sustained by the driver's willful misconduct does not apply in this case, since the defendant ceased to be a driver the moment he …


Federal Procedure-Limitation Of Actions-Suspension Of Statute Of Limitations As To Citizen Of Enemy-Occupied Territory In War Time, Stephen J. Martin S.Ed. Apr 1956

Federal Procedure-Limitation Of Actions-Suspension Of Statute Of Limitations As To Citizen Of Enemy-Occupied Territory In War Time, Stephen J. Martin S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, a Filipino, loaned money to a recognized guerilla unit in the Philippine Islands in 1943, during the period of the Japanese occupation of the Islands. He filed suit in the United States Court of Claims on December 31, 1952, to recover the amount of the loan. Defendant United States moved to dismiss on the ground that the claim was barred by the six-year statute of limitations applicable to the Court of Claims. Held, petition dismissed. Plaintiff's cause of action first accrued at the earliest moment when suit might have been legally instituted upon it. No circumstance in the …