Meagher v. Johnson

James P. Johnson sued Mark Patrick Meagher alleging that he was injured as a result of Meagher’s negligence. The jury returned a verdict for Johnson, and Meagher appeals. Although Meagher assigns error to the trial court’s action in granting certain instructions, in refusing to rule as a matter of law that Johnson was contributorially negligent, and in entering judgment on an excessive verdict, the dispositive issue on appeal is whether the evidence was sufficient as a matter of law to prove gross negligence.

Because Johnson prevailed in the trial court, we will state the evidence in the light…