Ladner v. Bender Welding & Machine Co.
Ladner v. Bender Welding & Machine Co.
Opinion of the Court
The plaintiffs-appellants in each of these consolidated cases
During the day, Sunday, August 17, as it became known that Camille had shifted course westward and that the storm would strike the Mississippi Gulf Coast that night
The plaintiffs both claim that their vessels or their anchor lines were struck by EL TORO and that the defendants negligently failed to seek shelter sooner than was done and that the craft should have been anchored in a safer and better manner so as to avoid dragging its anchor and damaging the other two crafts. Contact with either vessel or its anchor lines was denied by the answer and by the testimony of the captain of EL TORO.
Making permissible credibility choices between sharply conflicting versions of what occurred, the trial court found that EL TORO exercised due and proper care, that while “[it] did in fact drag its anchor, [it] made no physical contact with either the OFF KEY, or the MISS BEHAVE; but it was shown by a preponderance of all of the evidence that as an inevitable and unavoidable result of an act of God, the plaintiffs * * * suffered damages which human skill and
Careful review of the testimony in the 1160 page record before us fails to show that the findings and conclusions of the trial judge were “clearly erroneous”. See McAllister v. United States, 1954, 348 U.S. 19, 75 S.Ct. 6, 99 L.Ed. 20; Rule 52(a), F.R.Civ.P. To the contrary, they are amply supported by the record.
The judgments below are in all respects
Affirmed.
. Both for trial below and upon this appeal.
. Actually the eye passed over Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, a few miles to the west of the location here involved, Gulf-port Lake.
. Citing and quoting from Petition of United States of America (Dammers & Van Der Heide Shipping & Trading (Antilles), Inc. v. Steamship Joseph Lykes et al.), 5 Cir. 1970, 425 P.2d 991, 995.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Oscar B. LADNER and Liberty Mutual Insurance Company v. BENDER WELDING AND MACHINE CO., Inc., Defendants-Appellees J. C. McCAA, Jr., and Travelers Insurance Company v. BENDER WELDING AND MACHINE COMPANY, Inc.
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published