Kewanee Oil Co. v. Remmert-Werner, Inc.

Summary

The plaintiff sought damages for aircraft damage allegedly caused by negligent repair and maintenance of the landing gear and warning system, alternatively alleging faulty manufacture. The Missouri appellate court upheld contributory-negligence instructions concerning the pilot’s knowledge of an unreliable gear-warning signal and failure to use available backup procedures. The court also rejected challenges to the jury’s inspection of documentary exhibits and affirmed the judgment for defendants.

Holdings

1. The contributory-negligence instructions did not improperly assume disputed facts. Read in their entirety, and particularly in light of their prefatory 'if you believe' language, they required the jury to determine from the evidence whether the pilot knew or should have known that the warning signal was malfunctioning and unreliable.
2. Plaintiff failed to demonstrate reversible error in permitting the jury to inspect Exhibits B and G. Because the exhibits were omitted from the appellate record, their intendment and content were taken as favorable to the trial court's ruling and unfavorable to plaintiff; the record also did not establish prejudice.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the contributory-negligence instructions improperly assumed disputed facts concerning the unreliability of the landing-gear warning signal.
2. Whether the trial court erred by permitting the jury to inspect defendants' Exhibits B and G, which plaintiff characterized as containing hearsay, conclusions, self-serving statements, or other prejudicial material, and whether any such error was reversible.

Disposition

affirmed