L.S. Ayres & Co. v. Hicks case brief summary

L.S. Ayres & Co. v. Hicks case brief

(1942) 

Facts: Plaintiff fell off of escalator and got fingers caught in it. Defendant unreasonably delayed stopping escalator, plaintiff’s injuries escalated. No negligence in constructing escalator. 

Decision: New trial granted. 

Reasoning: No general duty to rescue a person in peril. However, there are some exceptions where a person must take affirmative steps to effect the rescue of a person. Court imposes such duties. The only negligence that the defendant is guilty of is waiting too long which aggravated the injuries. The jury should have been limited and restricted in assessing damages to injuries that were the proximate result of actionable negligence. Which is the aggravation of the injury, duty to avoid aggravation.

Holding: A defendant who is not negligent of the original act but only of the aggravation is liable for aggravation of the injury and jury should be so instructed, under circumstances where the plaintiff has some relationship to defendant where the defendant can exercise some control over plaintiff’s action or instrumentality. 

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