James v. Robeck

Embert James was injured when his automobile was struck by another driven by the defendant, Ben Robeck. In the accident, James suffered injuries to his lower back and some facial lacerations. He has a congenital lower back condition. Liability for the accident is not in issue on appeal.

The jury returned a verdict of $17,000. The trial judge granted defendants’ motion for a new trial unless the plaintiff agreed to a reduction to $7,500. The plaintiff has appealed.

The trial judge gave the following reasons for his action:

1. Based on the evidence in this case and viewing all of the evidence in…