Handelman v. Schwartz

Plaintiffs’ action for damages for $5,500 for conversion of chattels, and defendant’s counterclaim for $1,-043.93 resulted in a verdict in favor of plaintiffs in the action and the counterclaim with damages assessed at $45,000. The court denied plaintiffs’ motion to correct the verdict to read “$4,500.00” and granted defendant’s motion for a new trial on the ground that the damages assessed by the jury were manifestly excessive and could not have been based on the evidence. Plaintiffs’ petition for leave to appeal from the order granting the new trial was allowed. We held that it was the duty…