Noah Root, Respondent v. the Great Western Railroad Company, Appellant

Summary

The New York Court of Appeals reversed the lower court, holding that the Great Western Railroad Company was not liable for the loss of the plaintiff's goods because there was no evidence of a contract obligating it to carry the freight beyond its own line and the 1847 statute does not impose such liability on intermediate carriers absent an express or implied undertaking. The court further found no agreement or partnership with the Michigan Southern Railroad and limited the carrier's liability to delivery to the next connecting carrier.