Negley v. Massey Ferguson

The opinion of the court was delivered by The present appeal poses questions arising from the interaction between the workmen's compensation law and the comparative negligence statute. In considering these two statutes this court is confronted with the relative equities present when there is a concurrently negligent employer and a negligent third-party tort-feasor. These two cases were consolidated and jointly tried in the district court to a single jury. The cases arose from a single occurrence. Dwight Negley and Robert Nichols were employees of Orrland, Inc. They were electrocuted on the job when a forklift came in contact with overhead power lines owned and maintained by the Kansas Power and Light Company (KP&L). The widows of these workmen were paid workmen's compensation benefits and will continue to receive benefits for the minor children. The two widows brought wrongful death actions against the manufacturer of the forklift and against KP&L. The employer Orrland, Inc. was brought into the action to determine its attributable share of causal negligence.