Kelly v. Foxboro Realty Associates, LLC

In this personal injury case we must decide whether it was permissible for a judge to instruct jurors that they could discuss evidence among themselves during the course of the trial, without the agreement of all parties. We do not indorse the practice except in civil trials where all parties agree, but conclude that the defendants suffered no prejudice in this case from the judge’s decision to allow the jury to do so. We also must decide whether the judge correctly instructed the jury on the “control” an employer must exercise over an independent contractor to be liable for the contractor’s…