Schlagenhauf v. Holder
United States Supreme Court
379 U.S. 104 (1964)
After Schlagenhauf, driving a Greyhound bus, collided with a tractor-trailer and injured a passenger, that passenger sued several defendants including Schlagenhauf, and two co-defendants (CCI and NLC) petitioned for Schlagenhauf to undergo separate examinations in internal medicine, ophthalmology, neurology, and psychiatry. CCI's petition merely asserted Schlagenhauf 'was not mentally or physically capable' of operating the bus, while NLC's petition alleged only that his vision was impaired at the time of the accident, yet the district court ordered all the requested examinations and the Seventh Circuit affirmed.
Whether, if a party does not assert his mental or physical condition either in support of or in defense of a claim, an opposing party's conclusory statement about the party's condition is sufficient to warrant mental or physical examinations of the party.