Opinion ID: 2272642
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Heading: The Development of Sudden Emergency Doctrine in Kentucky Jurisprudence

Text: In City of Louisville v. Maresz, 835 S.W.2d 889, 892 (Ky.App.1992), the Court of Appeals briefly recited the historic underpinning of the sudden emergency doctrine, including its introduction into American law by the United States Supreme Court in Stokes v. Saltonstall, 38 U.S. (13 Pet.) 181, 193, 10 L.Ed. 115 (1839) (citing as authority the English case of Jones v. Boyce, 1 Starkie's Rep. 393, 171 Eng. Rep. 540 (N.P.1816)) and its introduction into Kentucky jurisprudence in South Covington & Cincinnati Street Ry. Co. v. Ware, 84 Ky. 267, 1 S.W. 493 (1886) (citing Stokes, and noting that [t]his rule is sustained by both reason and precedent.) The rule of law is that when a person is placed in a position of peril by the negligence of another, and is compelled to choose instantly what to do to save himself, if he chooses as a person of ordinary prudence would have in such a position and is injured, he has a right to recover, notwithstanding the fact that, if he had made a different choice, he would not have been injured. Illinois Central R. Co. v. Wilkins, 149 Ky. 35, 147 S.W. 759, 760 (1912). Although the sudden emergency doctrine initially appeared in cases, such as Illinois Central R. Co., absolving the plaintiff from the fatal effect of contributory negligence, the rationale behind the rule applied with equal force to those defending themselves against charges of negligence. By the early twentieth century, a review of reported cases shows that the rule was more often invoked by defendants, often transportation companies, as evidenced by its application in Kentucky Traction & Terminal Co. v. Roschi's Adm'r, 186 Ky. 371, 216 S.W. 579 (1919) and Consolidated Coach Corp. v. Hopkins' Adm'r, 238 Ky. 136, 37 S.W.2d 1 (1931) ([I]f the driver of the bus had turned to the right instead of turning to the left, he would have passed behind the Ford, and no one would have been injured, but, with only two-thirds of a second in which to act, the bus company is not responsible if he chose not the wisest course.) [7] We are aware of no boating accident cases in Kentucky that involve the sudden emergency doctrine, but we note that the concept has long been accepted in maritime litigation. See The Elizabeth Jones, 112 U.S. 514, 526, 5 S.Ct. 468, 28 L.Ed. 812 (1884) (quoting The Bywell Castle, L.R. 4 Prob. Div. 219) (where one ship has, by wrong maneuvers, placed another ship in a position of extreme danger, that other ship will not be held to blame if she has done something wrong, and has not been maneuvered with perfect skill and presence of mind.). In Sekerek v. Jutte, 153 Pa. 117, 25 A. 994, 995 (1893), the court noted: [T]he change in the movement of the [decedent's] boat which brought a portion of it in front of [appellants' steamboat] was sudden, unexpected, and disconcerting. The action of the appellants' servants must therefore be considered in the light of the situation which suddenly confronted them. They were in the presence of an emergency which imperiled the lives of the men in the boat, and ... had but a moment of time in which to think and act. The doctrine has also been recognized in modern recreational boating accidents. See Reed v. Reed, 182 Neb. 136, 153 N.W.2d 356 (1967) (whether defendant's conduct in motorboat collision was excusable under sudden emergency doctrine was question for jury); Del Vecchio v. Lund, 293 N.W.2d 474 (S.D.1980) (operator of motorboat that struck water skier held entitled to a sudden emergency instruction). We turn next to an examination of the practical application of the doctrine before and after the shift to comparative negligence.