Niles v. Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia
Georgia Court of Appeals
473 S.E.2d 173, 222 Ga. App. 59 (1996)
- Written by Jennifer Flinn, JD
Facts
Julian Niles (plaintiff) was a doctoral student seeking a PhD in physics at Georgia Tech University (defendant). Prior to enrolling at Georgia Tech, Niles had completed a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a master’s degree in physics from other universities. While a student, Niles had admittedly spent hundreds of hours in laboratories, was familiar with chemicals, and knew how to use reference materials to look up the properties of chemicals. All doctoral students, including Niles, often spent time working in laboratories on experiments without the supervision of professors. Niles was enrolled in a specific “special problems” class under his professor, Dr. Erbil. While working in the laboratory on his own, Niles was injured when chemicals mixed inside a metal canister exploded. Niles filed a negligence lawsuit against Georgia Tech and the Regents of the University System of Georgia (the university) (defendant), alleging that the university failed to provide him with safety training and that Niles should have been warned of the danger of mixing certain chemicals. The trial court entered a directed verdict in favor of the university, and Niles appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Andrews, J.)
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