ATLANTIC COAST LINE RAILROAD COMPANY, A FOREIGN CORPORATION, APPELLANT,
v.
GEORGE E. JEFFORDS, 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.
A railroad employee sued under the Federal Employers' Liability Act for injuries caused by the defendant's negligent failure to provide a safe workplace. The jury awarded $65,000, and the railroad appealed, challenging the exclusion of certain evidence and claiming the verdict was excessive.
The court held that the letter was not part of the hospital record as defined by Florida statute and therefore the trial court properly excluded it. The railroad failed to demonstrate an abuse of discretion in denying its motion for a new trial on excessive verdict grounds.
“the letter referred to was not a part of the hospital record as defined by § 382,31 [*841] Fla.Stat., F.S.A.”
Establishes the court's holding that the railroad's doctor's letter, despite being attached to hospital records, was not legally part of the hospital record for evidentiary purposes.
Previewing 1 of 2 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceGeorge E. Jeffords, an employee of Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, was injured when the railroad allegedly failed to furnish him a reasonably safe place…
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 Hospital Records cases and more on FLexlaw
Plaintiff, appellee, sued for damages under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act, 45 U.S.C.A. § 51 et seq., alleging that the defendant, railroad, had negligently failed to furnish him a reasonably safe place to work, as a result of which he was injured. The defendant answered including an affirmative defense of contributory negligence. The plaintiff received a verdict of $65,000 at the hands of the jury and this appeal followed after judgment thereon.
The appellant has presented eight points, none of which show reversible error. The main reliance is twofold; one, the court erred in excluding from the evidence a letter which was included with the plaintiff’s hospital records; and second, the court erred in failing to grant a new trial upon the ground that the verdict was excessive.
At the trial the defendant attempted to introduce a composite exhibit from the plaintiff’s medical records from the Atlantic Coast Line Hospital in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. The plaintiff made no objection to the introduction of the hospital records, but did object to a letter that was attached to the hospital records. This letter was an extensive medical report written by a doctor employed by the railroad and directed to the chief surgeon of the railroad. The trial court sustained plaintiff’s objection. The appellant, railroad, now urges on this appeal: that the letter was a part of the hospital record. We hold that under the circumstances of this case, the letter referred to was not a part of the hospital record as defined by § 382,31 *841Fla.Stat., F.S.A. See Chilton v. Dockstader, Fla.App.1961, 126 So.2d 281.
Appellant’s point urging that the court erred in failing to grant a new trial on the ground that the verdict was excessive, fails to carry the burden of demonstrating that the ruling of the trial court amounted to an abuse of discretion. See Cloud v. Fallis, Fla. 1959, 110 So.2d 669; City of Hialeah v. Revels, Fla.App.1960, 123 So.2d 400,
We have examined the record in the light of the other points presented, including the assignments directed to the allowance of expert witnesses’ fees and find no reversible error.
Affirmed.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Cloud v. Fallis, 110 So. 2d 669 (Fla. 1959)
- Royal Carraway v. Revell, 123 So. 2d 400 (Fla. 1st DCA 1959)
- Chilton v. Dockstader, 126 So. 2d 281 (Fla. 2d DCA 1961)
- City OF Hialeah v. Revels, 123 So. 2d 400 (Fla. 3d DCA 1960)