Alaska Steamship Co. v. Pacific Coast Gypsum Co.

Citations

• 78 Wash. 247
• 138 P. 875
• 1914 Wash. LEXIS 1007

Syllabus

<p>Trial — Instructions—Repetitions—Number. Unnecessarily long instructions, with repetitions, are not prejudicially erroneous, where the repetitions did not give undue prominence to some point to the injury of a party, and the jury were not likely to be confused or misled.</p> <p>Same — Contradictory Instructions. In an action for personal injuries, instructions to the effect that it would take actual knowledge of the defect to defeat recovery, are not in conflict with other instructions to the effect that recovery would be defeated if the defect was open and apparent, where the instructions as a whole told the jury that respondent was charged with absolute knowledge of the defect, if open and apparent, and if not, actual knowledge was necessary.</p> <p>Same — Confusing Instructions. A jury cannot be said to be confused because certain instructions employed the word “knowledge” without any qualifying word and other instructions used the words “actual knowledge.”</p> <p>Same — Instructions — “Knowledge” — Actual or Constructive. Instructions to the effect that knowledge of the vice principal is knowledge of the principal, and that the law attributes knowledge of an open and obvious defect, and the use knowingly of such a defective instrument defeats recovery, are not objectionable as reducing actual knowledge to constructive knowledge.</p> <p>Same — Instructions—“Actual Knowledge.” An instruction as to “actual knowledge as the time of the accident,” does not imply that the knowledge must have been received on the day of the accident, as distinguished from previously acquired knowledge possessed at that time.</p> <p>Principal and Agent — Notice to Principal — Servant’s Knowledge. Knowledge of workmen as to a defective appliance is not notice to the master, where no control or supervision of the same had been delegated to them by the master.</p> <p>Trial — Instructions—Construction as a Whole. An instruction authorizing recovery by the plaintiff, • if the proximate ca