Montgomery Ward & Co. v. Duncan

311 U.S. 243 (1940)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P sued for personal injuries, and at the close of evidence, D moved for a directed verdict. That motion was denied, and the judgment went to P. D then moved for a judgment n.o.v. or a new trial. The trial held there was no evidence of negligence and ordered judgment for D. P asked that the motion for a new trial be overrule in order to make the judgment final and the trial judge just entered the judgment n.o.v. P appealed. The appeals court ruled in P's favor and remanded for a new trial. D demanded remand on the issue of a new trial, but the court ruled that because the judgment n.o.v. was granted; that was the equivalent of a denial of the motion for a new trial. The Supreme Court granted certiorari.