Cox v. Northwest Airlines
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
379 F.2d 893 (1967)
A Northwest Airlines (defendant) plane crashed into the Pacific for reasons that were never determined, since no bodies or meaningful wreckage explaining the cause were recovered; Cox's estate (plaintiff) sued relying on res ipsa loquitur rather than alleging any specific negligent act, and the trial court awarded damages. Northwest appealed, presenting evidence of its maintenance records, crew training, and normal takeoff and weather conditions, arguing res ipsa loquitur was improperly applied without any allegation of specific negligence.
Whether, if a plaintiff alleges negligence under the rule of res ipsa loquitur, he must allege a specific negligent act on the part of the defendant.