Texas & Pacific Railway Co. v. Bourman

Background

A railroad section hand was injured after jumping from a moving express train while following his foreman’s instruction to get off. The worker sued the railroad company for damages, won a jury verdict, and the lower courts affirmed. The railroad, incorporated under federal law, appealed to the Supreme Court challenging the verdict.

Reasoning

The central question was whether the railroad should be liable when the worker was hurt after obeying his foreman and while the train was being handled by the engineer. The Court explained that both the foreman and the engineer were co-workers of the injured man. Because the injury could have been caused by the foreman’s direction or by the engineer’s sudden movement, the trial judge should have told the jury that injuries caused by a fellow worker generally do not make the employer liable. The Court reviewed prior decisions and contrasted a different case where the only issue was whether the injured person’s jump was itself reckless. Here, because co-worker negligence was a possible cause, the requested instructions about co-workers should have been given.

Real world impact

The Court reversed the judgment and sent the case away because the jury was not told about the co-worker rule. Practically, the decision means employees who are injured by the careless acts of their on-the-job co-workers may be prevented from recovering from their employer unless the trial properly addresses that issue. The ruling requires trial judges to give clear instructions to juries when co-worker negligence is argued.