Hans v. Franklin Square Hospital

Davidson, J., dissents and filed a dissenting opinion at page 339 infra.

Most evidentiary presumptions, or permissible inferences, when traced to their inception are nothing more than reasonable conclusions that may (or must) be drawn from circumstances. For example, the doctrine with the frightening epithet res ipsa loquitur1 — the thing speaks for itself — is nothing more than an inference or presumption from the facts of a case that a defendant’s act caused the injury. Where the instrumentality causing injury is shown to be under the control of a defendant and the injury is such that, in…