Foley v. Philadelphia Rapid Transit Co.

Citations

• 240 Pa. 169
• 87 A. 289
• 1913 Pa. LEXIS 646

Syllabus

<p>Practice Supreme Court — Assignments of error to charge of court — Exceptions in court below — Act of May 11, 1911, P. L. 279 —Buie 28.</p> <p>1. An appellant cannot successfully assign error to the charge of the court below unless he has had an exception noted to the charge before verdict, and has made a request, which must appear on the record, that the charge be reduced to writing and filed. The Act of May 11, 1911, P. L. 279, has not changed the practice so as to dispense with the necessity for a general exception, where appellant desires parts of the charge not especially excepted to reviewed on appeal. The exception need not under that act be allowed by the court, but it must be asked for in the hearing of the court before the jury retires. Curtis v. Winston, 186 Pa. 492, followed.</p> <p>2. Appellant brought the charge of the court on the record by a request under the Act of Assembly, and had a bill sealed which recited the parts excepted to at the trial and contained the words, “did then and there except to the aforesaid charge.’’ Held, this was not sufficient to overcome the failure either to secure additional special exceptions or to take a general exception before verdict rendered.</p> <p>3. An assignment of error which violates Eule 28 by not containing a reference to the page of the paper book or appendix where the matter complained of may be found in its regular order will not be considered.</p> <p>Negligence — Damages—Instructions to jury — Life expectancy— Measure of damages.</p> <p>4. In the trial of an aetion to recover damages for personal injuries, where no evidence was offered of life expectancy, it was not error for the court to charge: “There has been no evidence offered here as to the expectancy of life. You have seen her (the plaintiff’s) appearance and you will have to judge that for yourself.”</p> <p>5. In such case it was error for the court to instruct the jury that if plaintiff “was injured as she stated, and if she has suffered as s