Jones v. Cyprus Plateau Mining Corp.

DURHAM, Justice:

Defendant Cyprus Plateau Mining Corporation (Cyprus), appeals from a judgment in favor of plaintiff Thayde L. Jones. Cyprus also appeals from the district court’s denial of its motion for a new trial. We affirm.

BACKGROUND

In 1990, a large rock face fell on Jones, injuring him while he worked in Cyprus’s Star Point No. 2 Mine as an employee of J.S. Redpath Company (Redpath). Redpath was under contract to Cyprus to construct tunnels between coal seams at the mine. The area contained vertical ground displacement, known, as “graben,” that makes tunneling particularly difficult.…