Smith v. Coca Cola Bottling Co.

The conditions usually stated as necessary for the application of the principle of res ipsa loquitur are: (1) the accident must be of a kind which ordinarily does not occur in the absence of someone’s negligence; (2) it must be caused by an agency or instrumentality within the exclusive control of the defendant; (3) it must not have been due to any voluntary action or contribution on the part of the plaintiff. Prosser on Torts, p. 293. See Foss v. Baker, 62 N. H. 247, 249; Boucher v. Railroad, 76 N. H. 91, 95; McCourt v. Travers, 87 N. H. 185, 186; anno. 4 A. L. R. (2d) 466, 467.

This doctrine…