[DOWNLOAD] "Ervin v. Sears" by Supreme Court of Illinois * eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Ervin v. Sears
- Author : Supreme Court of Illinois
- Release Date : January 15, 1976
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 57 KB
Description
This appeal involves a claim for damages for personal injuries which arose from an accident in January 1963. The case was tried before a jury in the circuit court of Madison County and resulted in a general verdict for the defendants, Sears, Roebuck & Company and Dewey Ward, manager of the Sears store at Alton (hereinafter referred to as defendant). Plaintiff filed a motion for a new trial which was granted. The appellate court reversed the order granting a new trial and remanded the cause to the circuit court with directions to enter judgment on the verdict. (36 Ill. App.3d 64.) We granted leave to appeal, and affirm the decision of the appellate court. The determinative issue involves the instructions which were given to the jury. Plaintiff's injuries occurred at a construction site where he was employed as a welder. He descended more than 400 feet into a narrow shaft where he was to burn a hole in a steel coupling. Plaintiff was dressed in thermal underwear, which had been purchased from defendant, coveralls and a two-piece slicker used to protect the workman's clothing. While working with a cutting torch, a spark of molten metal struck plaintiff about the chin and fell between the coveralls and the thermal underwear. The spark became lodged in plaintiff's groin area. Plaintiff contends that the thermal underwear caught fire and flames shot up around him. He suffered severe burns before he was able to be extricated from the shaft.