United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Palermo v. Luckenbach S.S. Co., Inc., 355 U.S. 20 (1957)

Palermo v. Luckenbach Steamship Co., Inc.

No. 350

Decided October 21, 1957

355 U.S. 20

Syllabus

A jury awarded damages to petitioner, a longshoreman, for personal injuries sustained while working on a ship owned and operated by respondent. The Court of appeals reversed on the ground that the trial court had erred in refusing to charge the jury that petitioner was not entitled to any recovery if he voluntarily chose to use a passageway known by him to be unsafe and if there was any other passageway known by him to be safe.

Held: certiorari is granted, the judgment is reversed, and the case is remanded.

(a) The trial court did not commit reversible error in refusing to grant such an instruction.

(b) Petitioner's alleged choice of a more dangerous route did not, under the proofs, operate to bar recovery as a matter of law.

(c) The jury was properly instructed that petitioner's negligence, if any, was to be considered in mitigation of damages under the rule applicable in actions for personal injuries arising from maritime torts.

246 F.2d 557 reversed and remanded.