Paul E. Field v. A/s Ganger Rolf, Fred Olsen & Co., and Yerba Buena Corporation

Field appeals from an adverse judgment in an action against the owner of the SS BOLINAS. His complaint alleges that on November 26, 1958, while he was employed as a longshoreman at Stockton and unloading bagged cargo in the hold of the BOLINAS, the cargo slipped and knocked him down. We conclude that the judgment must be affirmed.

The court found that some of the bags in the hold in which Field was working did slide or fall against his lower legs or feet, that he complained of back pain and did not return to work that day, but lost only a few hours time, that it was not proved that the accident caused Field to sustain any injuries at all, and that he has failed to prove any causal connection between the physical condition of which he complains and anything occurring aboard the ship.

We have carefully examined the findings, the transcript and the exhibits and we conclude that the court’s finding of lack of causation of plaintiff’s claimed injuries is fully supported. The fact that Field took a few hours off to see a doctor would not result in a valid claim, if, in fact, he was not injured in the accident.

Field has had a long history of alleged back injuries. The record shows…