PACIFIC POSTAL TELEGRAPH CABLE COMPANY
v.
O'CONNOR

U.S. | 1888-11-19
No. 1282
128 U.S. 394 Supreme Court of the United States (1888) Caution
Also reported at: 32 L. Ed. 488 · 9 S. Ct. 112 · 1888 U.S. LEXIS 2227 · SCDB 1888-041
Cited by 68 cases

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Synopsis

In this personal injury damages case, the defendant challenged a judgment of $5,000 (reduced from an initial $5,500 verdict through a remittitur filed in the plaintiff's absence) by arguing the trial court abused its discretion in allowing the reduction. The Supreme Court dismissed the writ of error for lack of jurisdiction, holding that it could not review the trial court's discretionary allowance of the remittitur and that the final judgment amount of $5,000 was within the court's authority.

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Opinion of the Court
Mr. Chief Justice Fuller

Mr. Chief Justice Fuller delivered the opinion of the court.

This was an action to recover damages for personal injuries, which resulted, August 29th, 1888, in a. verdict for $5500. Upon the return of the verdict the court directed, as minuted by the - clerk, judgment to be entered thereon. On the 30th day of August the plaintiff below, by his counsel, asked leave , in open court to remit the. sum of $500,- which was granted, and judgment rendered for $5000 and costs, “and-now so appears of record.”

• Subsequently the defendant below moved to set aside the allowance of the remittitur and to correct the judgment, which motion was denied by the court, and defendant excepted ', and by bill of exceptions brought the court’s direction to the clerk of August 29th into the record, and the fact that, the judgment of August 30th was rendered in the absence of defendant and his counsel.

A writ of error having been subsequently prostecuted to’ reverse the judgment, defendant in. error moves to dismiss'it for want of jurisdiction.

We cannot hold upon this record the action of the Circuit Court to have been in abuse of its discretion, and as the judgment as it stands is for $5000 only, the motion to dismiss must be granted. Ala. Gold Life Ins. Co. v. Nichols, 109 U. S. 232; First Nat. Bank of Omaha v. Redick, 110 U. S. 224; Thompson v. Butler, 95 U. S. 694.

Writ of error dismissed.

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Citator

Cited By (31 total)

  • Merlin v. Boca Raton Cmty. Hosp., Inc., 479 So. 2d 236 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985)
    …losure of information which he gave to his attorney for the purpose of securing legal assistance is founded upon the belief that it is necessary “in the interest and administration of justice”. Hunt v. Blackburn, 128 U.S. 464, 470, 9 S.Ct. 125, 127, 32 L.Ed. 488. As stated in the Comment to Rule 210 of the A.L.I. Model Code of Evidence: “In a society as complicated in structure as ours and governed by laws as complex and detailed as those imposed upon us, expert legal advice is essential. To the furnishing…
  • Louisville & Nashville R.R. Co. v. Sloss-Sheffield Steel & Iron Co., 269 U.S. 217 (U.S. 1925)
    …Hormel & Co., 240 Fed. 381, 383-384. The petition of the Sloss-Sheffield Company of June 30 for a modification may be treated as a remittitur by that company of a part of the amount originally awarded, Pacific Postal Telegraph Cable Co. v. O’Connor, 128 U. S. 394; the order of July 12 operates as the entry of the remittitur; and appropriate amendments [*226] in the pleadings may be deemed to have been made here. The insistence of the Louisville & Nashville that the order of July 12 should be deemed valid and…
  • United States v. Woodall, 438 F.2d 1317 (5th Cir. 1970)
    …t. Over 92 years ago the Supreme Court of the United States held that when one has entered upon such a line of defense it constitutes a waiver of the right to bar the reception of evidence as privileged. Hunt v. Blackburn, 128 U.S. 464, 9 S.Ct. 125, 32 L.Ed. 488 (1888). A leading text in the field of evidence arrives at the same conclusion. It notes that waiver by implication involves two basic elements. The first is subjective — Does the person holding the right to claim the privilege intend to waive it?…

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