Washington v. United States

The State of Washington, as subrogee of a State Patrolman, under the provisions of the Workmen’s Compensation Law, 1 and the Attorney General of the State, as plaintiffs, brought an action against the United States, based upon the Federal Tort Claims Act, 2 for damages for personal injuries sustained by the Patrolman, when the vehicle which he was driving came into collision with a Government fire truck. The plaintiffs appealed from a judgment for the defendant. The United States cross-complained for damages to its fire truck and cross-appealed from the District Court’s denial of its claim. However, abandonment of the cross-appeal was announced in the oral argument, and, henceforth in this opinion, we shall refer to the State of Washington and its Attorney General as appellants and to the United States as appellee.

As the trial judge remarked in the oral announcement of his decision, the facts “are scarcely in dispute at all.” From the findings and the supporting evidence, we summarize them as follows:

For a good many years prior to the occurrence hereinafter related, there had been an established practice based upon an informal understanding, whereby the Fire Departments of the…