Alston v. Stewart
Alston v. Stewart
Opinion of the Court
The scaffolding upon which the plaintiff was working was erected by C. G. Dixon & Co., the contractors for the brick-work, and was sufficient for their purposes. The defendant had a contract for the stone-work of the building and obtained the consent of Dixon & Co. to use the scaffolding to set it. It was clearly their business to see that it was strong enough for that purpose, and to strengthen it if it was not. It was alleged, upon the trial, and there was evidence in support of it, that the defendants were notified that the scaffolding was not strong enough for the heavy stone which they designed to place upon it. If, then, the defendants knew, or ought to have known, of the defect in the scaffolding, the plaintiff was entitled to recover for the injuries he sustained by reason of such defect, and the competency of the men employed by them is immaterial.
Nor was the usage of trade referred to in the third assignment of any importance. There can be no such usage as would justify the use of insufficient scaffolding.
Nor was it any concern of the defendants whether the plaintiff obtained a sum of money from the Bricklayers’ Union to pay his doctor’s bills and expenses.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
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- Syllabus
- Where a contractor for stone-work on a building obtains permission from the contractor for brick-work to use a scaffold erected for the bricklayers, and is at the same time notified, through his agents, that the scaffold must be strengthened before being used for raising stone, it is negligence on the part of the contractor for stone-work not to strengthen the scaffold, and if it breaks under the weight of a stone, and an employee of the bricklayer is injured, the contractor for stone-work is liable in damages to the injured party. The competency of the defendants’ employees is immaterial. . Where a witness for plaintiff testified that the defendant had no special right to use the scaffold, it was inadmissible to ask, on cross-examination, if, by a usage of trade, the contractor for stone-work had a right to use the bricklayers’ scaffold, as there could be no such usage as would justify the use of insufficient scaffolding. In an action for damages for personal injuries, it is incompetent for the defendant to offer evidence in mitigation of damages that the plaintiff’s doctor’s bill and expenses were paid by a beneficial association.