Samuel Laning v. the New York Central Railroad Company

Summary

The New York Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment for the plaintiff carpenter, holding that the railroad, as master, was liable for retaining an incompetent foreman after knowledge of his drunkenness and for the negligent use of unskilled workers in erecting a scaffold. The court further held that the plaintiff's knowledge of the foreman's condition did not, as a matter of law, bar recovery, leaving contributory negligence to be decided by the jury. The court also rejected the lower court's claim that it lacked authority to reduce the verdict damages without a new trial.