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Show I THE READER'S COURTROOM . Just an Occupational Hazard By Will Bernard, LL.B If an Acrobat Sprains an Ankle, Is The Theater Owner Responsible? A feature of a travelling vaudeville vaude-ville show was a girl acrobat. One evening, at the end of her act, she started walking off the stage. Unfortunately, Un-fortunately, in some inexplicable manner, a rubber ball had rolled onto the platform. The girl, busy smiling at the audience, stepped on the ball fell, and sprained her May a Person Carry a Grudge "Beyond the Grave" By Means of His Will? A man got into legal difficulties with his partner. In the midst of the bitter court battle that followed, the man died. In his will, he left a substantial bequest to his son but only on the condition that the son would carry on the fight against the partner to the bitter end. As it happened, the son had no stomach for the controversy. So he went to court to test the validity of this "grudge clause," arguing that it was against the public interest to perpetuate per-petuate a quarrel in this way. But the judge disagreed and held that the unusual proviso was quite legal. le-gal. May a Dog Bite The Hand That Feeds Him? A woman had a collie which had the nasty habit of nipping people. One day a delivery man, noticing the dog on the sidewalk, held out a piece of candy. The animal's response re-sponse was to bite his hand! When the man later sued the dog's owner ankle. Later she sued the theater owner for damages, claiming that he was responsible for keeping the stage clear of all obstacles. But the court turned down her claim. The judge said that the girl couldn't blame the management un- less she could have proved that the ball had been lying there for some time long enough to attract the attention of the stage hands. A man was arrested on a charge of beating his wife with a rolling pin. At the trial, the defendant took the witness stand to tell his side of the story. The judge didg't like the way things were going, and soon took over the cross-examination himself. He fired question after question at the man, all in a loud and angry voice. Later the jury brought in a guilty verdict, but on appeal, the man was awarded a new trial. The upper court said that the judge's manner was Improper, because It indicated prejudice. for damages, she insisted that his gesture had "provoked" the dog Into biting. However, the court made her pay for the delivery man's injury. The judge telt that any dog mean enough to "bite the hand that feeds him" should not be allowed to run loose at all. |