Opinion ID: 409035
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Because it was wet or the sea-the ship slightly rolling just plain slip.

Text: .... Q. You don't know why? A. Why? It could be the ship's rolling. I don't know why. Q. Sir- A. I was concentrating on my work, right. I was interested to cut off that thing. I didn't watch my foot. The foot was standing there. I slipped while I working and the ship moved, the foot slipped. That's why I say I don't know why (emphasis added). 5 While it is understandable that the defendant would prefer a second opportunity to persuade a jury to return a modest damage award, the logic of the argument is unclear: if the jury had determined the amount of damages in relation to their contributory negligence percentage, the setting of a low percentage would indicate that, if anything, damages had been scaled down from what they might have been had the contributory negligence factor been high. In this circumstance, it would normally be the plaintiff, not the defendant, who might have a claim that damages should be retried in the event of a retrial as to contributory negligence 6 If this procedure were used, the jury would be told that defendant's negligence has already been determined and that their task is only to determine whether the plaintiff was contributorily negligent and, if so, to determine what percentage of responsibility for the accident is attributable to the plaintiff's contributory negligence. The parties would, of course, be entitled to present all evidence relevant to the fault of both parties in order for the jury to make an apportionment of fault 7 In some situations, it might be inappropriate to order such a limited partial new trial. For instance, if in this case the jury's contributory negligence factor had been impermissibly high, then any retrial might have to encompass all aspects of liability: it might be unclear from such a verdict whether the jury really thought the defendant was liable or whether their finding of liability coupled with a high assessment of contributory negligence represented a compromise between factions. Similarly, if in this case the jury's award of damages as well as its assessment of contributory negligence had been low, then it might be necessary to afford the plaintiff the option to retry damages as well as liability: the jury might have discounted the damages to compensate for the plaintiff's contributory negligence