Wallowa Valley Stages, Inc. v. Oregonian Publishing Co.

The Oregonian Publishing Company appeals from a judgment upon a jury verdict for the plaintiff.

The question is whether The Oregonian’s legal relationship with its codefendant Badgett was such that The Oregonian should be liable on a theory of respondeat superior for damages resulting from a collision between Badgett’s automobile and the plaintiff’s bus. The jury found Badgett negligent. He has not appealed.

At the time of the collision Badgett was on his way from Enterprise to obtain newspapers from a distribution point The Oregonian maintained in La Grande. It was Badgett’s duty, in order to…