Loden v. Getty Oil Company

HERRMANN, Chief Justice:

In this accident case, Carlton L. Loden sued to recover for injuries sustained while working on the premises of the defendant Getty Oil Company. Shortly thereafter, he committed suicide, and the complaint was amended to substitute his wife as plaintiff under 10 Del.C. § 3704(a). 1

Defendant moved (1) to dismiss that part of the claim which sought the present value of decedent’s lost earning power subsequent to death, and (2) to dismiss the claim for damages due to death because the death was self-inflicted and, thus, not a proper basis for recovery. The Superior Court…