## Facts

- Augusta Levy and Mary Levy, Massachusetts residents, were injured while riding as guests in an automobile.
- Their vehicle collided with a motor vehicle driven by Ralph A. Steiger, also a Massachusetts resident.
- The collision occurred at an intersection in East Providence, Rhode Island.
- The plaintiffs filed tort actions for personal injuries in Massachusetts.
- At trial, the judge applied Massachusetts St. 1914, c. 553 and instructed that the defendant bore the burden to prove the plaintiffs’ contributory negligence.
- The jury returned verdicts for the plaintiffs ($5,000 for Augusta Levy; $2,000 for Mary Levy).
- The defendant excepted to the ruling and jury instruction on the burden of proof, presenting the sole question on appeal.

## Issues

1. Whether Massachusetts St. 1914, c. 553 (placing on the defendant the burden to allege and prove contributory negligence) applies in a Massachusetts action for personal injuries suffered in another state.

## Decision

- The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that St. 1914, c. 553 affects procedure only (allocation of burden of proof).
- Because procedural matters are governed by the law of the forum, the statute applied in these Massachusetts actions even though the injuries occurred in Rhode Island.
- The defendant’s exceptions were overruled, leaving the plaintiffs’ verdicts undisturbed.

## Legal Principles

- In tort conflicts, the law of the place of injury governs whether a right of action exists, while the law of the forum governs the remedy and procedural incidents such as pleading, evidence, and practice.
- A statute shifting the burden of pleading and proving contributory negligence to the defendant is procedural when it does not change the substantive standards of negligence or contributory negligence.
- A foreign rule that alters the scope of the right of action (rather than merely trial mechanics) is treated as substantive and is not displaced by forum procedure.

## Conclusion

Massachusetts treated its contributory-negligence burden-shifting statute as procedural, so it governed the trial in Massachusetts even though the accident occurred in Rhode Island, and the plaintiffs’ jury verdicts were affirmed by overruling the defendant’s exceptions.


Levy v. Steiger, 124 N.E. 477 (Mass. 1919)