Baltimore & Ohio R. R. v. McKenzie
Supreme Court of Virginia
Argued at Staunton and decided at Richmond. Error to judgment of circuit court of Shenandoah county, in an action of trespass on the case, wherein McKenzie was plaintiff, and the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company was defendant. The object of the action was to recover damages for injuries received by the plaintiff while in the performance of his duties as an express messenger in the employment of the defendant company.
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Argued at Staunton and decided at Richmond. Error to judgment of circuit court of Shenandoah county, in an action of trespass on the case, wherein McKenzie was plaintiff, and the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company was defendant. The object of the action was to recover damages for injuries received by the plaintiff while in the performance of his duties as an express messenger in the employment of the defendant company. The injury so received resulted in the loss of the plaintiff’s left arm, and was occasioned by a collision of the train, upon which the plaintiff was, with a large rock which…
1Opinion of the Court
Lewis, P.,
delivered the opinion of the court.
It is a general rule of law, well settled in England and mostly in this country, that one who enters the service of another, takes upon himself the ordinary risks of the negligent acts of his fellow-servants in the course of the employment, In other words, the master is exempt from liability to his servants for the fault of their fellow-servants.
The leading case on the subject is Farwell v. Boston & Worcester Railroad Corporation, 4 Met. (Mass.), 49, and the rule, as there announced by Chief-Justice Shaw, has since been acted on in numerous cases,…
2Cases cited10 opinions
- Railroad Co. v. StoutSupreme Court of the United States · 1874
- Hough v. Railway Co.Supreme Court of the United States · 1880
- Randall v. Baltimore & Ohio RailroadSupreme Court of the United States · 1883
- Stokes v. SaltonstallSupreme Court of the United States · 1839
- Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co. v. RossSupreme Court of the United States · 1884
5 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by38 opinions
- Pullman Palace Car Co. v. LaackIllinois Supreme Court · 1892
- Southern Railway Co. v. Bryant's Adm'rSupreme Court of Virginia · 1897
- Farish & Co. v. ReigleSupreme Court of Virginia · 1854
- Root v. Kansas City Southern Railway Co.Supreme Court of Missouri · 1906
- Norfolk & Western Railroad v. Nuckol's Adm'rSupreme Court of Virginia · 1895
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