Howe v. Buffalo, New York & Erie Railroad
New York Court of Appeals
Appeal from the general term of the Supreme Couit, in the seventh district, where a judgment rendered in favor of the plaintiffs, in a case tried before the court, without a jury, had been affirmed.
Read the full summary
Appeal from the general term of the Supreme Couit, in the seventh district, where a judgment rendered in favor of the plaintiffs, in a case tried before the court, without a jury, had been affirmed. (Reported below, 38 Barb. 124.) This was an action by James T. Howe against the New York Central Railroad Company, to recover an indemnity for damages to which the plaintiff had been subjected, as a conductor of the compai y, by obeying its orders, in expelling a passenger from its cars for non-payment of fare. On the trial of the cause, before Johnson, J., without a jury, it appeared, that the…
1Opinion of the CourtPorter, J.
The plaintiff acted in good faith, and in obedience to the defendants’ instructions. He supposed the company to possess the authority it assumed, and he found himself involved in a serious liability, by fidelity in the discharge of a duty imposed by his principal, where he was wholly free from intentional wrong. Under these circumstances, the company very properly assumed the burden of defending his act. Whether the judgment recovered against him was right or wrong, is a question which does not arise on the present appeal. If it was right, the defendants should have paid it, without exposing…
2Cases cited8 opinions
- Gardner v. BuckbeeNew York Supreme Court · 1824
- Chace v. HinmanNew York Supreme Court · 1832
- Clark v. PinneyNew York Supreme Court · 1826
- Coventry v. BartonNew York Supreme Court · 1819
- Kip v. BrighamNew York Supreme Court · 1810
3 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.