LAWRENCE P. BUTZ, APPELLANT,
v.
ELWOOD J. RINEHEART, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
The Florida Supreme Court affirmed an order granting a new trial to the plaintiff after a jury verdict for the defendant. The appellate court agreed that the trial judge erred by giving an improper jury instruction requested by the defendant and by overemphasizing contributory negligence, which could have misled the jury.
No, the trial judge did not err in granting a new trial. The court found that the given jury instructions, particularly the one requested by the defendant and the repetition of contributory negligence charges, could have misled the jury to the plaintiff's detriment.
“We agree with the trial judge that his earlier charge on the law of the road was more appropriate in the circumstances of this case, and that it was error, under the facts here present, to give the charge requested by the defendant.”
Establishes the appellate court's agreement with the trial judge's finding that the defendant's requested jury instruction was erroneous.
Previewing 1 of 2 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceA jury returned a verdict in favor of the defendant in a case where the plaintiff was seeking damages. The trial judge subsequently granted the plaint…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Contributory Negligence cases and more on FLexlaw
ROBERTS, Justice.
This is an appeal from an order granting a new trial to plaintiff after the jury had returned a verdict in favor of defendant. The grounds of the trial judge’s order were (1) undue emphasis on the law of contributory negligence in his charge to the jury, and (2) an erroneous, charge on the law of the road, given at the request of the defendant.
We agree with the trial judge that his earlier charge on the law of the road was more appropriate in the circumstances of this case, and that it was error, under the facts here present, to give the charge requested by the defendant. This charge, and the repetition of the charges relating to contributory negligence, could reasonably have misled the jury to the plaintiff’s detriment; and the trial judge properly exercised his discretion in granting a new trial.
Affirmed.
DREW, ,C. J., . and TERRELL, ROBERTS and O’CONNELL, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Lucinda Jefferson and Thomas Jefferson v. City OF W. Palm Beach, 233 So. 2d 206 (Fla. 4th DCA 1970)…nt city’s liability for the acts or omissions of its jail employees. Reversed and remanded. CROSS, C. J., and WALDEN, J., concur. . F.A.R. 3.7(i), 32 F.S.A. See Pittman v. Roberts, Fla.App.1960, 122 So. 2d 333. . See Butz v. Rineheart, Fla.1956, 88 So. 2d 125.…
-
Royal Kitchen Cabinet Corp. v. Palcic, 111 So. 2d 42 (Fla. 3d DCA 1959)…he jury was not misled and that the instruction was not overemphasized. See Reliance Life Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh v. Everglades Discount Co., 5 Cir., 1953, 204 F. 2d 937; Nesbit v. Everett, 5 Cir., 1957, 243 F. 2d 59; cf. Butz v. Rineheart, Fla.1956, 88 So. 2d 125. All salient features of the defendants’ charges, the refusal of which are assigned as error, were covered by the court in the charges given. Finding no prejudicial error in the charge of the trial judge the •judgment is affirmed. Affirmed. CARRO…
-
Tampa Transit Lines, Inc. v. Anton Nickolai, 113 So. 2d 863 (Fla. 2d DCA 1959)…PER CURIAM. Affirmed. See Lithgow Funeral Centers v. Loftin, Fla.1952, 60 So. 2d 745; Butz v. Rineheart, Fla.1956, 88 So. 2d 125; and Cloud v. Fallis, Fla.1959, 110 So. 2d 669. KANNER, Acting Chief Judge, SHANNON, J., and SMITH, CULVER, Associate Judge, concur.…
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence