Helen Palsgraf v The Long Island Railroad Company - Essay Example

An appellate court dismissed an appeal by Long Island Railroad in a case that Palsgraf had won against it. Long Island Railroad brought the case to the court of appeal against the upheld decision on its responsibility to Palsgraf for negligence in handling a passenger. The passenger had a parcel of dynamite that exploded when Long Island Railroad’s guards assisted the passenger to board a train, though the content of the parcel was unknown. The explosion caused harm to Palsgraf who was a distance away.
Issue

The following two issues were to be determined in the case.
• Criterion for determining the duty of care owed to a party
• The party to whom a duty of care is owed
Decision
The appeal court reversed the earlier ruling in which four votes supported the decision against three votes.
Holding
If the risk of harm were foreseeable to Long Island Railroad, through its guards, then it would owe Palsgraf a duty of care. Read More