Coia v. Eastern Concrete Products Co.

This is an action of trespass on the case for negligence brought by the plaintiff to recover for injuries sustained when he fell from a defective ladder while attempting arbitration of a labor dispute.

The case was tried before a justice of the superior court sitting with a jury. At the conclusion of the trial the court denied the defendant’s motion for a directed verdict and submitted the case to the jury which returned a verdict for the plaintiff in the amount of $2,500. The plaintiff and the defendant each moved for a new trial, and the trial justice denied the defendant’s motion and…