O'Connor v. Pennsylvania Railroad Co.
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
308 F.2d 911 (1962)
O'Connor (plaintiff) slipped on "rugged" and dirty ice on the terrace of Pennsylvania Station and sued the Pennsylvania Railroad (defendant), which could only be liable if the ice predated the snowstorm occurring at the time of her fall rather than resulting from that very storm. Weather Bureau records showed very little snow had fallen in the days before her fall but a large amount fell just beforehand; the jury nonetheless found for O'Connor, and the trial court granted the Railroad's motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict (j.n.o.v.), prompting O'Connor's appeal.
Whether a court may set aside a jury verdict through judgment notwithstanding the verdict when the uncontested evidence leaves no reasonable basis for the jury's finding.