Nature of the Case
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Facts
P was working aboard D's drilling tender in the Gulf of Mexico when he was struck on the head by a joint of pipe. P sustained a serious head injury requiring immediate medical attention and hospitalization. This involved the surgical removal of the depressed and fragmented bones of his skull. P returned to his home in Kentucky where a local surgeon referred him to Dr. William F. Meacham, a neurosurgeon at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Dr. Meacham performed a tantalum cranioplasty, a surgical procedure consisting of the insertion of a metal plate into the skull. P was released to return to work. P who was not represented by counsel, agreed to settle any legal claim he may have had against D. On March 6, 1972, a seaman's complaint prepared by D's counsel was filed in district court along with medical reports of P's treatment. Simultaneously, P filed an answer and a joint stipulation of facts signed by both of the parties. The stipulation of facts stated that P was 50 percent contributorily negligent in causing his injury and limited his recoverable damages to $17,500. On that same day, March 6, the district court approved the settlement and entered a judgment that incorporated and adopted the stipulation of facts. On June 4, 1974, P filed a Rule 60(b) motion to set aside the 1972 judgment alleging primarily that D had misled the court as to the extent of his injuries and his mental competence. P also filed a new Jones Act suit against D seeking to recover additional damages for the injuries. The court held that P had failed to carry the burden of proving either his own incapacity or fraud and overreaching by D. The court denied the motion for relief from judgment and dismissed the new action on the basis of res judicata. P appealed.
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