Brief Fact Summary. Plaintiff, Florence Nuttall, sued her deceased husband’s employer for requiring him to come into work despite being very ill. She sued as executrix of his estate. In the first trial Plaintiff won a verdict of $30,000 but it was reversed, and the court directed a verdict against her in the second trial.
Synopsis of Rule of Law. The present sense impression exception to hearsay allows evidence if made substantially at the time of the event and is otherwise reliable.
Issue. Did the trial court commit error by not allowing Plaintiff to testify regarding the conversation she over heard her husband having with his employer?
Held. Justice Goodrich issued the opinion for the United States Third Circuit Court of Appeals in reversing the lower court and holding the Plaintiff’s testimony should have been allowed.
If the plaintiff in this case can prove that management forced a sick employee, of whose illness they knew or should have known, into work for which he was unfitted because of his condition, a case is made out for the jury under the Federal Employers Liability Act.
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