925 N.W.2d 482
S.D.2019Background
- Maher owns a mobile home park in Box Elder and receives water from the City’s water system; park waterlines are privately owned and maintained.
- The City operates wells and booster pumps to supply water; after taking a contaminated well offline in 2014, it increased booster pump power at a different well.
- In Feb. 2015 numerous waterlines in Maher’s park broke; Maher reported the breaks and the City later installed pressure reducing valves, after which breaks stopped.
- Maher sued the City for negligence, alleging the City negligently increased system pressure and failed to install pressure reducing valves and otherwise design/operate the system properly.
- The City moved for summary judgment invoking the public duty rule, arguing Maher failed to show a special duty; the circuit court granted summary judgment for the City.
- The Supreme Court reversed, holding the public duty rule did not apply and that the City owed Maher a duty to operate its water system with reasonable care.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the public duty rule bars Maher’s negligence claim | Maher: this is ordinary negligence by the City in operating its water system; public duty rule is for law enforcement/third-party prevention only | City: public duty rule precludes liability absent a special duty assumed to an individual | Court: public duty rule does not apply to the City’s proprietary act of supplying water; duty exists to use reasonable care |
| Whether a special-duty analysis under Tipton is required | Maher: not applicable; claim is not about preventing third-party misconduct | City: Maher must show a special duty under Tipton factors | Court: Tipton special-duty framework not triggered here because claim concerns proprietary service, not public safety/law enforcement |
| Whether sovereign immunity waiver creates new causes of action | Maher: waiver allows suit like against private actor | City: waiver limited; public duty rule still constrains duties | Court: sovereign immunity waiver does not create new causes of action but does not expand public-duty rule to proprietary services; private-actor standard applies |
| Whether there remained material factual disputes on breach/causation | Maher: facts about pump changes, pressure, and valve installation support causation | City: disputed factual causal link and absence of special duty justified summary judgment | Court: summary judgment improper on duty question; breach and causation remain plaintiff’s burden at trial |
Key Cases Cited
- Cromwell v. Rapid City Police Dep’t, 632 N.W.2d 20 (S.D. 2001) (sovereign immunity principle and waiver context)
- Tipton v. Town of Tabor (Tipton II), 567 N.W.2d 351 (S.D. 1997) (public duty rule and special-duty factors)
- Hagen v. City of Sioux Falls, 464 N.W.2d 396 (S.D. 1990) (early adoption of public duty rule analysis)
- Walther v. KPKA Meadowlands Ltd. P’ship, 581 N.W.2d 527 (S.D. 1998) (distinguishing claims involving third-party misconduct from ordinary negligence)
- E.P. v. Riley, 604 N.W.2d 7 (S.D. 1999) (limiting public duty rule to law enforcement/public safety contexts)
- McDowell v. City of 906 N.W.2d 399 (S.D. 2018) (building-permit case applying public duty rule to regulatory/public-safety schemes)