Electric Co. v. Dow

Citations

• 166 U.S. 489
• 17 S. Ct. 645
• 41 L. Ed. 1088
• 1897 U.S. LEXIS 2042

Syllabus

<p>The statute of New Hampshire providing for proceedings against mill-owners to recover damages resulting from overflows of land caused by' dams erected by them, contained, among other things, a provision that “ if either party shall so elect, said court shall direct an issue to the jury to try the facts alleged in the said petition and assess the damages; and judgment rendered on the verdict of such jury, with fifty per cent added, shall be final, and said court may award costs to either party at its dis- . cretion.” In this case both parties elected trial by jury, which resulted in a verdict for damages for the defendant in error. Held, that the plaintiff in error, by availing itself of the power conferred by the statute, and joining in the trial for the assessment of damages, was precluded from denying the validity of that provision which prescribes that fifty per cent shall be added to the amount of the verdict, as the plaintiff in error was at liberty to exercise the privilege or not, as it thought fit.</p>