Hall v. HollandHall v. Holland
Plaintiff-appellant sued in the court below to recover damages for injuries alleged to have been sustained by reason of defendant-appellee‘s failure to provide him with a safe place to work. Trial was had uрon the issues made by defendant‘s pleas, and the jury found for the defendant. This appeal is from such verdict and judgment.
The only assignments of error argued on this appeal relate to the court‘s charge to the jury. Before discussing the errors thus assigned, we will briefly detail the facts of the case, which are as follows: Defendant employed plaintiff to paint a house owned by defendant, the plaintiff‘s employment status being either that of an independent contractor or an employee. The house was a one-story bungalow with an enclosed porch across the front and having a small wooden structure extending out from the porch over the front steps. This structure, which was variоusly referred to as a stoop, a porch, a canopy, and a shelter, was at least five feet wide and four and one-half feet deep, and was possibly somewhat larger. It was boxed in, with a peaked, or gabled roof, to match the gable effect of the enclosed front porch.
At the time plaintiff began painting the housе, the canopy (as we will hereinafter refer to it) was supported by pilasters at all four corners, two against the porch and two at the outer corners of the canopy. The defendant advised plaintiff not to spend too much time on painting the canopy, as he was planning to replace the two outer posts, which wеre defective. Accordingly, the plaintiff left unpainted a portion of the wall immediately above the canopy. The defendant then proceeded with the repairs, which consisted of removing the defective outer posts and replacing them with two diagonal “braces” extending from the outer corners of the canopy to the porch wall. The “braces” were either 4x4‘s or 4x6‘s, about 5 1/2 feet long, which the defendant had pre-cut at a mill so as to form a 45-degree angle at the corner of the canopy and the porch wall. After the remodeling, the canopy no longer stood on four legs like a table but hung on the wall like a bracketed shelf or balcony. The defendant employed a carpenter to do the actual work of removing the outer posts and inserting the diagonal braces. The defendant had not built the house, and had no actual knowledge of the manner in which the canopy was attached to the wall, nor could the manner of such attachment be ascertained by inspecting merely the outside of the canopy, as the structure was sealed in at the bottom and the roof joinder was concealed by weather-stripping. The defendant had neither architectural nor engineering experience, and did not consult anyone about the advisability of replacing the vertical posts with the diagonal braces. Neither did he obtain a building permit for the alteration, as required by City Ordinance.
The plaintiff, having completed the remainder of the house, undertook to paint the unfinished portion of the wall above the remodelled canopy. He testified that there was no way to paint this portion except by going on top of the canоpy. (This was, however, contradicted by the defendant in his testimony.) In so doing, he went up the ladder and, in his own words, “crawled out on this stoop. You had to lay down to paint this place and I laid down and started to move to get some paint on the brush and this stoop broke away from the house.” The canopy, or “stoop“, fell on him, inflicting
It is the plaintiff‘s theory that the defendant was negligent in (1) remodelling the canopy supports without seeking expert advice and without investigating the manner in which the canopy was attached to the porch wall, and (2) failing to obtain a building permit in violation of a City Ordinance which, it is alleged, would have insured a safe construction, as the standards of construction prescribed by ordinance required that “All members shall be so framed, anchored, tied and braced together as to develop the maximum strength and rigidity necessary for the purpose for which they are used.” The defendant contends, on the other hand, and so pleaded, that the plaintiff was not lawfully on the canopy at the time of the injury; that defendant had not invited or requested plaintiff to go upon the canopy; that there was no duty on the part of defendant to keep the canopy in a reasonably safe condition to sustain a live load equivalent to the weight of plaintiff; and that the plaintiff‘s own negligence in going upon the canopy proximately contributed to his injury.
At the outset, it may be stated that the duty of the defendant towards the plaintiff, with respect to the condition of the canopy, would appear to be the same whether the plaintiff was there as the employee of defendant or as an independent contractor. An independent contractor has the status of a business visitor, or invitee, upon the premises. Gowing v. Henry Field Co., 225 Iowa 729, 281 N.W. 281, 284; Dingman v. A.F. Mattock Co., 15 Cal.2d 622, 104 P.2d 26; Reardon v. Exchange Furniture Store, 7 W.W.Harr. 321, 37 Del. 321, 183 A. 330; McLaughlin v. Creamery Package & Mfg. Co., Mo. App., 130 S.W.2d 656; Magnolia Petroleum Co. v. Barnes, 198 Okla. 406, 179 P.2d 132.
Whether plaintiff was an employee-invitee or a business visitor-invitee, it was the duty of the defendant to use reasonable care in maintaining the premises in a reasonably safe condition and to have given the plaintiff timely notice and warning of latent and concealed perils, known to the defendant, or which by the exercise of due care should have been known to him, and which were not known by plaintiff or which, by the exercise of due care, could not have been known to him. Tutwiler v. I. Beverally Nalle, Inc., 152 Fla. 479, 12 So.2d 163; Breeding‘s Dania Drug Co. v. Runyоn, 147 Fla. 123, 2 So.2d 376; Fred Howland, Inc., v. Morris, 143 Fla. 189, 196 So. 472, 128 A.L.R. 1013; Restatement of Torts, Vol. 2, Sec. 343; 38 Am.Jur., Negligence, page 754; 35 Am.Jur., Master and Servant, page 612.
While the invitee is entitled to expect that the owner will take reasonable care to discover the actual condition of the premises and either make them safe or warn him of dangerous conditions, Restatement of Torts, Section 213; 35 Am.Jur., page 612; Haefeli v. Woodrich Engineering Co., 255 N.Y. 442, 175 N.E. 123, 126; Malolepszy v. Central Market, 143 Neb. 356, 9 N.W.2d 474, such owner is entitled to assume that the invitee will perceive that which would be obvious to him upon the ordinary use of his own senses, and is not required to give to the invitee notice or
It is also a rule, applicable here, that the owner or occupant of premises owes the same duty to exercise ordinary care for safety of persons upon his premises whether they are there by express or implied invitation. It is held that there is no practical difference between the one situation and the other, the same duty is due from the owner of the premises to the victim in either case. Texaco Country Club v. Wade, Tex.Civ.App., 163 S.W.2d 219.
The phrase “implied invitation” imports knowledge by the defendant of the probable use by the plaintiff of the defendant‘s property so situated and conditioned as to be open to, and likely to be subjected to, such use. 38 Am.Jur. page 757. As stated by the Georgia court in Coffer v. Bradshaw, 46 Ga. App. 143, 167 S.E. 119, 123: “The duty to keep the premises safe for invitees extends to all portions of the premises which are included within the invitation and which it is necessary or convenient for the invitee to visit or use in the course of the business for which the invitation was extended, and at which his presenсe should therefore reasonably be anticipated, or to which he is allowed to go.” See also 45 C.J., § 240, page 830; 65 C.J.S., Negligence, § 48; Restatement of Torts, Vol. 2, Sec. 322; Cooley on Torts, 3d Ed., 1259; Brosnan v. Koufman, 294 Mass. 495, 2 N.E.2d 441, 104 A.L.R. 1177; Reardon v. Exchange Furniture Store, 7 W.W.Harr. 321, 37 Del. 321, 183 A. 330; Fred Howland, Inc., v. Morris, 143 Fla. 189, 196 So. 472, 128 A.L.R. 1013.
As we have heretofore indicated, the only errors here assigned relate to the Chancellor‘s charge to the jury. Let us, then, examine the charges here complained of, in the light of the foregoing rules.
It is first contended that the trial court erred in charging the jury that “If you find that by the exercise of reasonable care in inspecting the building the plaintiff and defendant each had the same knowledge of, or means of knowing, the danger which caused the injury to plaintiff, it will be your duty to find a verdict of not guilty.” There would be no objection to such an instruction if we were here dealing with a situation in which the parties were charged with the same degree of responsibility. But we cannot recommend such a charge under the facts in the instant case, in which a latent pеril is involved, and where a higher degree of responsibility with respect to such danger rests on the defendant, as owner of the premises. See Restatement of Torts, Vol. 2, Sec. 343(f). Neither can we sustain the contention of defendant that the foregoing charge is not subject to criticism when considered in connection with the charge, previously given at plaintiff‘s request, that “a business visitor is entitled to expect that the owner will take reasonable care to discover the actual condition of the premises and either make them reasonably safe or warn him of dangerous conditions.” Any curative effect of this last-quoted charge is dissipated when considered in connection with a later charge, given at defendant‘s request, with respect to the “due diligence” required by defendant, and which will be discussed in a subsequent portion of this opinion.
It is next contended that the trial court erred in charging the jury as follows: “If you find that it was not necessary that plaintiff go upon the shed in order to paint the wall above it, but did so merely for his оwn convenience, and in so doing failed to use due care to determine that the shed was safe for such use, it will be your duty to find a verdict of not guilty.” It will be remembered that there was a conflict in the testimony as to whether it was necessary for plaintiff to go up on the canopy in order to paint the wall above it. However, as we have hеretofore shown, the fact that it was merely convenient, rather than necessary, to go on that particular portion of the premises will not defeat the plaintiff‘s recovery if his presence there should reasonably have been anticipated by defendant. If it was the purpose of this charge to present to the jury the issues
We turn now to the last question presented by plaintiff on this appeal, the charge complained of therein reading as follows: “If you find that the defendant either employed the plaintiff to paint his premises or invited the plaintiff upon the premises to work, in that event, the law imposed upon the defendant the duty of providing the plaintiff with a reasonably safe place to work, and to use ordinary care and diligence to keep the premises in a safe condition. This does not mean that the defendаnt is the absolute insurer of plaintiff‘s safety while performing the work; nor does due diligence require defendant to rip and tear his premises apart to determine whether it is possible that one using them in the manner contemplated by the agreement in this case is likely to be injured. The degree of care to be exercised by defendant for the sаfety of plaintiff is dependent upon the circumstances, and I charge you that if you find the defendant had made a reasonable inspection and failed to find any condition which would lead an ordinary prudent person to anticipate that plaintiff‘s safety was endangered, then you must bring in a verdict of `not guilty.‘” It is the italicized portion of this charge which plaintiff assigns as reversible error, and we must sustain this contention.
It will be noted that the trial court properly charged the jury that “if you find the defendant had made a reasonable inspection and failed to find any condition which would lead an ordinarily prudent person to anticipate that plaintiff‘s safety was endangered, then you must bring in a verdict of `not guilty.‘” However, the court charged the jury further and specifically that due diligence would not require the defendant “to rip and tear his premises apart.” This was reversible error. It was contrary to
We will not unduly prolong this opinion by discussing the other charges here complained of, since the errors contained therein will be readily apparent to counsel and the trial court in the light of what has been said before, and a further discussion would be mere reiteration.
For the reasons stated, the judgment is reversed and the cause remanded for further proceedings consistent herewith.
Reversed and remanded.
ADAMS, C.J., and TERRELL and THOMAS, JJ., concur.