Epstein v. M. Blumenthal & Co.

Epstein (plaintiff) sued a store and its employee Rundbaken (defendants) for injuries from being struck by a ladder, alleging in her complaint that Rundbaken had imprudently carried the ladder horizontally out of the store without looking or warning pedestrians, but at trial she instead presented evidence that Rundbaken had descended the ladder, carried it toward the store entrance, and swung it around to enter, striking her in the process; the trial court instructed the jury it could find for Epstein only if the trial evidence matched her complaint's specific allegations, and the jury ultimately returned a verdict for both defendants.