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McLaughlin v. BNSF Railway Co.

300 P.3d 925 (2012)

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McLaughlin v. BNSF Railway Co.

Colorado Court of Appeals
300 P.3d 925 (2012)

Facts

Thomas McLaughlin (plaintiff) was operating a handbrake on a train owned by BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) (defendant) when the handbrake broke, causing him to suffer hernia and back injuries. McLaughlin had been born with a congenital hernia that was repaired when he was a child, but he had not experienced any problems until the incident. After McLaughlin was injured, he was diagnosed with preexisting degenerative-disc disease, but McLaughlin had not experienced any back pain prior to the incident. McLaughlin sued, and the trial court gave the jury an eggshell instruction due to McLaughlin’s hernia and an aggravation instruction due to McLaughlin’s preexisting back condition. The eggshell instruction precluded the jury from reducing McLaughlin’s award of damages due to any physical frailties that may have made him more susceptible to injury than an average person. The aggravation instruction provided that, if the jury found that the incident aggravated a preexisting injury or disease, it should compensate McLaughlin only for the portion of his injury attributable to the injury and not for the portion of the injury attributable to his preexisting condition. The jury found for McLaughlin and awarded $1,830,000 in damages. BNSF appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Jones, J.)

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