{"disclaimer":"This is a summary of public court records and is not legal advice. Missouri slip opinions may be modified or withdrawn; consult the official source.","party":{"slug":"sherry-spence","displayName":"Sherry Spence","totalCases":1},"cases":[{"caseId":"mo:sc96195:2018-05-22","opinionId":"bd11b5fe-27d4-5737-9c9f-93e8413855c4","slug":"sherry-spence-respondent-v-bnsf-railway-company-appellant-c96195","caseName":"Sherry Spence, Respondent, vs. BNSF Railway Company, Appellant.","caseNumber":"SC96195","court":"mo","courtLabel":"Supreme Court of Missouri","decisionDate":"2018-05-22","year":2018,"display_summary":"Sherry Spence sued BNSF Railway Company for the wrongful death of her husband, who was killed when a train struck his truck. A jury found BNSF negligent for failing to trim vegetation and for its train crew's actions, awarding Spence $20 million. BNSF appealed, arguing the trial court erred in denying a new trial based on juror nondisclosure, improper jury instructions, and denial of a mistrial during opening statements. The Missouri Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, finding BNSF waived its juror nondisclosure claim and that the jury instructions and denial of mistrial were proper.","primaryTopic":"civil-procedure","topicSlugs":["civil-procedure","appellate-procedure","jury-instructions","wrongful-death"],"outcomeNorm":"unknown","officialSourceUrl":"https://www.courts.mo.gov/file.jsp?id=125739","detailUrl":"https://ott.law/missouri-courts/opinions/sherry-spence-respondent-v-bnsf-railway-company-appellant-c96195","relatedPracticeAreas":[{"slug":"personal-injury","label":"Personal Injury","href":"/practice-areas/personal-injury","score":20,"source":"tag","url":"https://ott.law/practice-areas/personal-injury"},{"slug":"wrongful-death","label":"Wrongful Death","href":"/practice-areas/wrongful-death","score":12,"source":"topic","url":"https://ott.law/practice-areas/wrongful-death"},{"slug":"litigation","label":"Civil Litigation","href":"/practice-areas/litigation","score":12,"source":"topic","url":"https://ott.law/practice-areas/litigation"}],"role":"respondent"}]}