Hector Martinez and Co. v. Southern Pacific Transportation Co.
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
606 F.2d 106 (1979)
Hector Martinez and Company (plaintiff) hired Southern Pacific Transportation Co. (Southern) (defendant) to ship a large excavation machine that was due on March 1 but arrived, damaged, on April 2; repairs weren't finished until June 20. Martinez sought recovery for the repair costs, storage charges, and lost use of the machine both during the shipping delay and during the repair period. The parties settled the repair and storage claims, and Southern moved to dismiss the remaining lost-use claim, arguing it was a request for special damages for which Southern had received no notice. When the trial court allowed Martinez to amend to allege notice and Martinez declined, the court granted the dismissal, and Martinez appealed.
Whether damages for the lost use of an entire piece of machinery, caused by a carrier's delay in transporting it, are foreseeable general damages recoverable without special notice, or special damages that require the carrier to have received advance notice of the possible harm.