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Court Error – Abuse of Discretion

By: Derek Hawkins//March 25, 2019//

Court Error – Abuse of Discretion

By: Derek Hawkins//March 25, 2019//

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7th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Danny R. Ruark v. Union Pacific Railroad Company

Case No.: 17-2429

Officials: FLAUM, ROVNER, and SCUDDER, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Court Error – Abuse of Discretion

The Federal Employers Liability Act (FELA), 45 U.S.C. §§ 51-60, was enacted more than a hundred years ago to compensate railroad employees for injuries they receive on the job. Ruark was an employee of the Union Pacific Railroad when a hydraulic rail drill malfunctioned and sprayed him with hot oil. He sought relief under FELA using the legal doctrine of “res ipsa loquitur,” a doctrine that asks a finder of fact to infer liability when (as the Latin is often translated) “the thing speaks for itself.” Because of the burden-shifting nature of the doctrine, it requires some baseline conditions—namely that the defendant was in control of the instrumentality that caused the injury and that the plaintiff was not also negligent. The district court found that these conditions were not met and thus the jury should not be instructed that they could assume that “the matter spoke for itself” under the doctrine. We agree and find that the district court did not abuse its discretion by refusing to grant Ruark a continuance before trial. We affirm on both points.

Affirmed

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Derek A Hawkins is trademark corporate counsel for Harley-Davidson. Hawkins oversees the prosecution and maintenance of the Harley-Davidson’s international trademark portfolio in emerging markets.

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