Opinion

Selmo v. Baratono

  • 28 Mich. App. 217
  • 384 Mich. 834
  • 184 N.W.2d 367
  • 1970 Mich. App. LEXIS 1144
Court
Michigan Court of Appeals
Filed
Nov 30, 1970
Status
Published
Author
O'Hara
On the bench
Fitzgerald, Gillis, O'Hara
Cited by
12 cases

The opinion

O’Hara, J.

(concurring).

I concur with Judge Gillis, both in result and in the body of his opinion and I have indorsed it.

I write separately only to emphasize what I consider an essential distinction to be clearly recognized ; namely, the difference between a jury instruction that the proofs established that a party-defendant violated a statute and thus was guilty of negligence as a matter of law, but leaving the question of proximate causality to the jury (or the *229 judge when the trier of the facts) and the direction of a verdict of liability, leaving to the trier of the facts only the assessment of damages.

Assuming arguendo, that defendant General Motors had joined in a motion for a directed verdict of liability against defendant Curran, I would perforce hold that on the record the trial judge was obligated to deny it because of the remaining fact question of proximate causality.

A request to charge that defendant Curran was guilty of negligence as a matter of law is another matter.

As I read the record, I, at least, cannot find any such specific request to charge having been made and a denial thereof preserved. Hence, under settled law, the question is not before us on review.

Consequently, I join in affirming the denial of the motion for a new trial and affirming the judgment entered upon the jury verdict.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

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