Benton v. North Carolina Railroad

Citations

• 30 S.E. 333
• 122 N.C. 1007
• 1898 N.C. LEXIS 387

Syllabus

<p>Action for Damages — Venue—Refusal to Remove Action to Another County — Appeal—Measure of Damages■— Railroads — Lessor Railroad Liable for Negligent Acts of Lessee — Negligence—Excessive Verdict.</p> <p>1. It not being the duty of a judge (under Sections 196,197, of The Code) to remove a cause from one Court to another “unless he should be satisfied that the ends of justice demand it,” his refusal to so remove is not reviewable on appeal, when he is not satisfied byi the affidavits filed, that it is his duty to remove, and the fact that no counter affidavits are presented is immaterial.</p> <p>2. In the trial of an action for damages for the wrongful killing of plaintiff’s intestate it was proper to instruct the jury on the issue as to the amount of damages that the measure of damages for the loss of life is the present value of the net income of the deceased to be ascertained by deducting the cost of living and expenditures from his gross income and then estimating the present value of the accumulation from such net income based uxion his expectation of life, and in making such estimate the jury should consider the age, habits, industry, means, business qualifications and skill of the deceased and his reasonable expectation of life.</p> <p>3. A lessor railroad company is liable for the negligent acts of its lessee in operating the leased property.</p> <p>4. A motion to set aside a verdict in an action for damages on the ground that the award is excessive, and not warranted by the evidence, is addressed to the discretion of the trial judge and the exercise of such discretion is not reviewable.</p>