David CROPP and Orilla Mae Cropp, husband and wife, Appellants, v. INTERSTATE DISTRIBUTOR CO., a Washington corporation, and Robert Edward Rust, Respondents.
(92-1255-L3; CA A79549)
Court of Appeals of Oregon
Argued and submitted June 10, affirmed August 10, 1994
petition for review denied November 29, 1994 (320 Or 407)
510 Or. App. 880 P2d 464
Janet M. Schroer argued the cause for respondents. With her on the brief was Hoffman, Hart & Wagner.
Before Rossman, Presiding Judge, and De Muniz and Leeson, Judges.
Rossman, P. J., dissenting.
Plaintiffs brought this action against defendants seeking money damages for personal injuries and property damage that they sustained when a truck, owned by defendant Interstate Distributor Company (Interstate) and operated by defendant Rust, collided with their parked truck in California. Plaintiffs appeal from a summary judgment that their action was barred by California‘s one-year statute of limitations. We affirm.
Summary judgment is appropriate when the record shows that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
Plaintiffs are self-employed truck drivers. They live in Gervais, Oregon, which is also their principal place of business. In 1990, they worked in Oregon, Washington, California, Nevada and Arizona. Rust is a resident of Nevada and an employee of Interstate. He works mainly in California, but also works in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Washington and Oregon. He works in Oregon about twice a month and uses Interstate‘s maintenance and fueling facility in Wilsonville, Oregon. Occasionally, he uses another company‘s facility in White City, Oregon. Interstate is a Washington corporation with its principal office in Tacoma. It transacts most of its business in California.
On December 18, 1990, plaintiffs were returning to Oregon with a load of lime from Napa Valley, California. Near Doyle, California, they pulled to the side of Highway 395 to change drivers. Rust was also traveling on Highway 395, transporting merchandise north in an Interstate truck. His truck struck plaintiffs’ parked truck.
Plaintiffs retained counsel within one month of the accident. They began, but did not complete, the process of filing a lawsuit in Washington. Instead, in April, 1992, they
In their two assignments of error, which challenge the granting of defendants’ motion for summary judgment and the denial of their motion for partial summary judgment, plaintiffs assert that the trial court erred in concluding that, because the “greater contacts are outside of Oregon,” California‘s one-year statute of limitations,
We begin with the requirements of
“(1) Except as provided by
ORS 12.450 , if a claim is substantively based:“(a) Upon the law of one other state, the limitation period of that state applies; or
“(b) Upon the law of more than one state, the limitation period of one of those states, chosen by the law of conflict of laws of this state, applies.
“(2) The limitation period of this state applies to all other claims.”
Section 1 indicates that, to determine which statute of limitations applies, we must decide which state‘s substantive law forms the basis of plaintiffs’ claims. If only one state‘s substantive law could form the basis of plaintiffs’ claims, we apply that state‘s statute of limitations.
Substantive law creates, defines and regulates parties’ rights. Long v. Storms, 52 Or App 685, 687, 629 P2d 827 (1981). Plaintiffs allege that Rust was negligent in failing to keep a proper lookout, failing to keep his vehicle under control, driving his truck at a speed that was greater than reasonable and prudent under the circumstances and operating his truck “in violation of PUC regulations.” Those allegations concern the parties’ rights and responsibilities in operating motor vehicles on highways in California. California law, including its Vehicle Code, defines and regulates those rights.
Affirmed.
ROSSMAN, P. J., dissenting.
The question of which state‘s tort laws apply for the purpose of determining whether the claims are subject to Oregon‘s or California‘s statute of limitations is not as simple
“(1) Except as provided by
ORS 12.450 , if a claim is substantively based:“(a) Upon the law of one other state, the limitation period of that state applies; or
“(b) Upon the law of more than one state, the limitation period of one of those states, chosen by the law of conflicts of laws of this state, applies.
“(2) The limitation period of this state applies to all other claims.”
I agree with the majority that the answer to this case depends on which state‘s substantive law governs the claims. Determining, in turn, whether the claims are based on the substantive law of Oregon or California requires a choice of law analysis, which the majority does not make. I disagree with the majority‘s view that the claims here are based on the substantive law of the State of California because the accident took place there. Under a choice of law analysis, I would conclude that plaintiff‘s tort claims are substantively based only on the law of Oregon. Accordingly, I would conclude that, pursuant to
Although, under traditional conflicts rules, the substantive law of the place of the tort would control the issue of liability, in Casey v. Mason Constr. Co., 247 Or 274, 428 P2d 898 (1967), the Supreme Court adopted a rule that chooses the substantive law of the state having the “most significant relationship with the occurrence and with the parties,” as set forth in the Restatement (Second) of Conflicts of Laws § 379 (1971). The following choice of law methodology, derived from the cases, is helpful:
QUESTION (1): Is there an actual conflict between Oregon law and the claimed applicable law of another state? If
QUESTION (2): Does Oregon have a substantial interest in the outcome of the disputed issue?
QUESTION (3): Does the other state have a substantial interest in the outcome of the disputed issue? If the answers to (2) and (3) are no, then Oregon law applies. If the answer to (2) is yes, but the answer to (3) is no, then Oregon law applies. If the answers to (2) and (3) are no and yes respectively, then the law of the other state applies. If the answers to (2) and (3) are yes, then go to (4).
QUESTION (4): As between Oregon and the other state, which state has the greatest interest in the outcome of the dispute? The law of the state chosen in (4) is the applicable law.
For there to be a choice of law issue, there must be a choice to make. Oregon law and another state‘s law must be different on the disputed issue. DeFoor v. Lamatta, 249 Or 116, 119, 437 P2d 107 (1968). Here, there are two different laws on the disputed issue of whether plaintiffs’ personal injury claims were timely filed. In Oregon, plaintiffs had to file their action within two years of December 18, 1990.
Even if there is a difference between Oregon law and the law of the other state on the disputed issue, there is no choice of law issue unless both states have a substantial interest in having their law apply. Tower v. Schwabe, 284 Or 105, 108, 585 P2d 662 (1978). Whether a state has a substantial interest in having its law applied to a disputed issue involves identifying that state‘s interests in the case, Dabbs v. Silver Eagle Manufacturing Co., Inc., 98 Or App 581, 583, 779 P2d 1104, rev den 308 Or 608 (1989), and an examination of the policy behind the state‘s law on the disputed issue and how that policy would be affected by application or non-application of its law in the case. Tower v. Schwabe, supra, 284 Or at 107.
In contrast, the relevant factors show that any interest that California has in the outcome of the dispute is, at best, minor. Neither plaintiffs nor defendants are, or are considered to be, California domiciliaries for the purpose of resolving the conflict. The majority‘s holding seems to be based primarily on its view that, because the allegations of the complaint concern the parties’ rights and responsibilities in operating motor vehicles on the highways, only California substantive law is implicated. Although California has an interest in maintaining traffic safety in its state, that interest is met by enforcement of its traffic laws. See Tower v. Schwabe, supra. As between California and Oregon, the only
In short, the important contacts—where the parties live or are deemed to live and the economic impact of the litigation—are Oregon contacts. See Tower v. Schwabe, supra, 284 Or at 105; Myers v. Cessna Aircraft, supra, 275 Or at 501; De Foor v. Lamatta, supra, 249 Or at 116. The less consequential contact—where the accident occurred—is a California contact. See Myers v. Cessna Aircraft, supra, 275 Or at 516. I would conclude that that contact does not create a substantial interest in California. Accordingly, I would conclude that the answers to (2) and (3) are yes and no, respectively, and that Oregon substantive law therefore applies.
When a true conflict exists, i.e., when both Oregon and the other state have a substantial interest in the outcome of the disputed issue, then the question becomes which state has the greater interest—the most “significant relationship” to the case. Because I would conclude that California has no substantial interest in the outcome of the case, and that therefore there is no true conflict, I would not reach question (4).
The majority is misdirected by its assumption that, because the accident occurred on California‘s highways, California substantive law necessarily applies to the entire case. That conclusion begs the question. A complete analysis of all the factors relevant to the question of which state‘s substantive law applies can lead to only one result: Because of Oregon‘s substantial interest in the outcome of this case and