Di Tommaso v. Syracuse University

Headnote

Di Tommaso v. Syracuse University, 173 App. Div. 34 , affirmed.

Appeal, by permission, from an order of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the. fourth judicial

department, entered March I, 1916, which reversed ah order of the court at a Trial Term withdrawing a juror and putting the case over the term on motion of the defendant and imposing a trial fee of thirty dollars and defendant’s witness fees to be taxed upon the plaintiff, on trial of an action to recover for personal injuries alleged to have been sustained by plaintiff through the negligence of defendant.

The following questions were certified: “1. Was it improper to show upon cross-examination of the witness Stewart, as bearing upon his credibility, that he made the examination of the plaintiff at the request of the insurance company which was interested in the defense of the action ? 2. Was the cross-examination of the witness set forth in the order and testimony so elicited so improper as to constitute a sufficient irregularity to cause a mistrial ? 3. Did the court have power to impose upon the plaintiff the trial fee and the defendant’s witness fees as stated in the order ? 4. If the trial court was without power to impose on plaintiff the costs directed by the order, should the order, if otherwise, proper, have been modified by this court so as to impose such costs upon plaintiff’s attorney ? ”