Lockley v. CSX Transportation Inc.

5 A.3d 383, 2010 Pa. Super. 167, 2010 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3226, 2010 WL 3529809
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedSeptember 13, 2010
Docket1292 EDA 2009
StatusPublished
Cited by31 cases

This text of 5 A.3d 383 (Lockley v. CSX Transportation Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Lockley v. CSX Transportation Inc., 5 A.3d 383, 2010 Pa. Super. 167, 2010 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3226, 2010 WL 3529809 (Pa. Ct. App. 2010).

Opinions

OPINION BY

ALLEN, J.:

CSX Transportation Inc. (“Appellant”) appeals from the judgment entered in favor of Albert Lockley (“Plaintiff’) following a jury trial. We affirm.

The trial court summarized the facts and procedural history of this case as follows:

[Plaintiff,] Albert Lockley, age 53, commenced this litigation against [Appellant], pursuant to the Federal Employer’s Liability Act (FELA), 45 U.S.C. [387]*387§§ 51-60, and the Federal Locomotive Inspection Act (FLIA), 49 U.S.C. § 20701 et seq.
Plaintiff alleged that [Appellant] failed to provide him with a reasonably safe place to work during 84 years of employment on [Appellant’s] yard locomotives. Plaintiff also alleged that [Appellant] violated the FLIA by providing faulty seats in the locomotive cab. [Plaintiff] sought damages for cumulative trauma injuries, including disabling herniated discs, failed surgery on his cervical spine and other serious medical conditions caused by and/or aggravated by, inter alia, whole body vibrations, jolts and shocks, awkward postures and defectively mounted seats.
[Appellant] responded by asserting that [Plaintiff] was provided with a reasonably safe workplace. [Appellant] contended that Plaintiff’s spinal condition [was] the result of age related degenerative changes. [Appellant] presented the jury with its safety training programs and manuals. Further, [Appellant] argued that [Plaintiff] should have been more proactive to express complaints about neck and back problems. [Appellant] also denied that its seats were not securely mounted and braced.
During two weeks of trial in Spring, 2008, the jury heard from fourteen witnesses, watched several site files and videos, and reviewed hundreds of documents and photos from Plaintiff and [Appellant], Multiple expert witnesses were presented by each party in the specialty areas of orthopedics, occupational medicine, egonomics, biomechan-ics, economics, neurology, pain management, and, rehabilitation and vocational counseling. The jury also heard from many fact witnesses who described the work of a Locomotive Yard Engineer. On May 2, 2008, the jury returned a verdict in favor of [Plaintiff] in the amount of $2 million. The jury also determined that [Plaintiff] was 22 percent comparatively negligent for his injuries.

Trial Court Opinion (T.C.O.), 3/30/08, at 1-2.

Following the jury’s verdict, Appellant filed post-sentence motions. In these motions, Appellant contended that the trial court committed reversible error during the discovery phase of the litigation because it did not permit Appellant to take discovery pertaining to Plaintiff’s medical condition after Plaintiff had surgery. Appellant further contended that the trial court erred in striking a juror for cause after the jury was impaneled. In addition, Appellant, on various grounds, claimed that it was entitled to judgment notwithstanding the verdict (“JNOV”) because Plaintiffs theory for relief was preempted and/or precluded by applicable federal law. Finally, Appellant requested a new trial on the ground that the trial court abused its discretion in allowing Plaintiff to submit into evidence previous, similar claims made against Appellant to establish foreseeability of Plaintiff’s injuries and notice of the improper condition of the seats.

On March 30, 2009, the trial court denied Appellant’s post-trial motions. On that same date, judgment was entered in favor of Plaintiff.

On appeal, Appellant raises the following issues for review:

1. Whether the trial court erred in failing to compel (i) depositions of plaintiff and his surgeon and (ii) an independent medical examination of plaintiff’s pre-trial surgery[?]
2. Whether the trial court erred in striking a competent, qualified juror after the jury had already been impaneled and sworn[?]
[388]*3883. Whether the trial court erred in allowing the jury to hold [Appellant] liable based on allegations that [Appellant] failed to install headrests and other equipment that [Appellant] is not required to install under federal law[?]
4. Whether the trial court erred in admitting evidence of previous claims against [Appellant] despite plaintiffs failure to demonstrate that those claims involved injuries and circumstances that were substantially similar to the injury and circumstances alleged here[?]

Brief for Appellant at 3.

Most of Appellant’s issues on appeal claim that it was entitled to a new trial due to the trial court’s alleged errors during the course of the pre-trial and trial proceedings.

There is a two-step process that a trial court must follow when responding to a request for new trial ... First, the trial court must decide whether one or more mistakes occurred at trial. These mistakes might involve factual, legal, or discretionary matters. Second, if the trial court concludes that a mistake (or mistakes) occurred, it must determine whether the mistake was a sufficient basis for granting a new trial ... The harmless error doctrine underlies every decision to grant or deny a new trial. A new trial is not warranted merely because some irregularity occurred during the trial or another trial judge would have ruled differently; the moving party must demonstrate to the trial court that he or she has suffered prejudice from the mistake.

Harman v. Borah, 562 Pa. 455, 756 A.2d 1116, 1122 (2000).

Thus, we consider whether the trial court made an erroneous ruling and, if so, whether the mistake constituted harmless error or whether Appellant suffered any prejudice. See id. We "will not reverse an order denying a new trial unless the trial court committed an error of law that controlled the outcome of the case. Coward v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corp., 729 A.2d 614, 624 (Pa.Super.1999).

In its first issue, Appellant contends that the trial court erred in denying its motion to conduct post-surgical discovery of Plaintiff’s medical condition. Brief for Appellant at 26-30. We conclude that Appellant is not entitled to relief because it has failed to establish the requisite prejudice.

“Generally, on review of an order concerning discovery, an appellate court applies an abuse of discretion standard. To the extent that the question involves a pure issue of law, our scope ... of review [is] plenary.” Berkeyheiser v. A-Plus Investigations, Inc., 936 A.2d 1117, 1125 (Pa.Super.2007) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted).

Here, Appellant concedes that it conducted pre-surgical depositions of Plaintiff and his surgeon, and obtained an independent medical examination (“IME”) of Plaintiff. The case management order provided for discovery to conclude on October 1, 2007. R.R. at 61. On September 18, 2007, Appellant filed a motion for extraordinary relief, contending that Plaintiff was scheduled for spinal surgery on November 7, 2007. R.R. at 49.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
5 A.3d 383, 2010 Pa. Super. 167, 2010 Pa. Super. LEXIS 3226, 2010 WL 3529809, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/lockley-v-csx-transportation-inc-pasuperct-2010.