OPINION OF THE COURT
In this appeal we are asked to determine, inter alia, whether defendants, a nationally syndicated talk-show program, various television studios, and their alleged employees, both identified and unidentified, owed a duty to plaintiff, a minor who was to appear on a segment of the show with the theme out-of-control teens, at the time of a claimed sexual assault.
Procedural Posture
This matter comes before us in the context of a motion by defendants to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a cause of action pursuant to CPLR 3211 (a) (7). It is well established that in determining whether to grant such a motion, the pleading is to be afforded a liberal construction (CPLR 3026) and the court should accept as true the facts alleged in the complaint, accord plaintiff the benefit of every possible inference, and only determine whether the facts, as alleged, fit within any discernible legal theory (Leon v Martinez,
Plaintiff ’s Allegations
Plaintiff, at the time of the incidents referred to herein, was a 14-year-old girl residing in Texas. The named defendants include Maury Povich, The Maury Povich Show (the Show), Polly Gorman and Todd Kemmer, both of whom were employees of the Show, and John Does “1” through “9.”
The complaint asserts that in December 2001, in response to a televised solicitation for guests aired during the Show, plaintiff’s mother contacted the Show by telephone and explained that she was the mother of an “out-of-control” teen, specifically, plaintiff. Plaintiffs mother was promised that in exchange for her appearance on the Show, plaintiff would receive
A number of telephone conversations between plaintiff, plaintiffs mother and the Show’s staff ensued and, during one such call, the Show’s employees were alerted that plaintiff was receiving medication for emotional illness, had recently lost a close, immediate family member, and had attempted suicide. Moreover, during a private conversation with defendant Kemmer, plaintiff allegedly revealed her somewhat extensive sexual history, which included sexual relations with five boys under the age of 16 and a 29-year-old man. Kemmer purportedly encouraged plaintiff to bring sexually provocative clothing to the taping and to act in a sexually provocative manner.
Plaintiff, her mother and her grandmother, the latter of whom was her legal guardian, were thereafter flown to New York by the Show and transported, by limousine, to the Pennsylvania Hotel in Manhattan, where they were provided a room. The complaint states that in preparation for, and during the taping of the Show, plaintiff was separated from her mother and grandmother, who were assured by staff that the plaintiff would be supervised and cared for. Plaintiff avers that she was subsequently introduced to defendant Gorman, whom the Show represented as a “counselor,” but who apparently was a producer of the Show. Gorman, and other employees, just prior to the taping, allegedly urged plaintiff to act provocatively and to wear only the top of her pantsuit, which was long enough to cover her upper thighs, so as to appear “sexier,” which “would be better for the show.”
Plaintiff contends that during the taping of the program, while still separated from her mother and grandmother, she was taken to an area under the exclusive control of the Show, where she watched as other guests were filmed. It was at that time, in that area, that she was approached by an individual who represented himself as “Maury’s Limo Driver” (the driver). The driver allegedly exchanged “familiar greetings” with employees of the Show and was invited to remain in the restricted area. The driver thereafter is said to have complimented plaintiff on her good looks and sexuality, solicited and received her contact information in New York, and offered to “show her around town at night.” Plaintiffs mother, however, had arrived at some point during the conversation between plaintiff and the driver, witnessed the exchange and expressed concern to employees of
Plaintiff thereafter returned to the Pennsylvania Hotel with her mother and grandmother and, at some unspecified time later that night, the driver called plaintiff a number of times, but was turned away by the mother and the grandmother. Plaintiff, however, managed to sneak out of the hotel room without her mother and grandmother, after which the driver allegedly picked her up in a limousine, drove her to a dark, secluded area, and raped her.
The Procedural History
Plaintiff commenced this action by the service of a summons and complaint in July 2002 and interposed five causes of action: negligent infliction of emotional distress; negligent hiring and retention; negligence; negligence per se; and slander per se. Defendants, after receiving an extension of time to answer, instead moved to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a cause of action, pursuant to CPLR 3211 (a) (7), and, additionally, for failure to plead the slander claim with the requisite particularity, pursuant to CPLR 3016 (a). Plaintiff cross-moved to amend the complaint, pursuant to CPLR 3025 (b), in the event the court found the pleading deficient in any manner.
The motion court, by decision and order entered November 14, 2003, granted defendants’ motion to the extent of dismissing the negligent infliction of emotional distress, negligence per se and slander per se causes of action, and granted plaintiffs cross motion to the extent of permitting plaintiff, if so advised, to replead the slander claim. Defendants now appeal from so much of the motion court’s order that denied their motion to dismiss the causes of action for negligence and negligent hiring and retention, and plaintiff cross-appeals to the extent that her claims for negligent infliction of emotional distress and negligence per se were dismissed. Neither plaintiff, nor defendants, challenge the motion court’s dismissal, with leave to replead, of the slander per se claim.
Discussion
Negligence
Plaintiffs complaint asserts that defendants undertook to ensure that plaintiff was cared for and supervised and, in doing so, placed themselves in loco parentis, assuming “a duty to see
The threshold question in any negligence action is whether the alleged tortfeasor owes a duty of care to the injured party (Espinal v Melville Snow Contrs., Inc.,
In fixing the orbit of duty, an often difficult task, the courts must bear in mind the precedential and consequential effects of their rulings (Hamilton v Beretta U.S.A. Corp., supra at 232; Lauer v City of New York,
“Common-law experience teaches that duty is not something derived or discerned from an algebraic formula. Rather, it coalesces from vectored forces including logic, science, weighty competing socioeconomic policies and sometimes contractual assumptions of responsibility. These sources contribute to pinpointing and apportioning of societal risks and to an allocation of burdens of loss and reparation on a fair, prudent basis ...” (id. at 585; see also De Angelis v Lutheran Med. Ctr.,58 NY2d 1053 , 1055 [1983] [“not only logic and science, but policy play an important role”]).
The Court in Palka went on to opine that courts traditionally “fix the duty point by balancing factors, including the reasonable expectations of parties and society generally, the proliferation of claims, the likelihood of unlimited or insurer-like liability, disproportionate risk and reparation allocation, and public policies affecting the expansion or limitation of new channels of liability” (Palka v Servicemaster Mgt. Servs. Corp.,
Mindful of the foregoing general precepts and guidelines, we now move to the more specific question of whether a temporary custodian has a continuing duty to protect a child from harm once that child has been returned to the custody of a parent or guardian or, as in this case, both a parent and a guardian. In Pratt v Robinson (
Since the Court of Appeals rendered its decision in Pratt almost 30 years ago, numerous negligent supervision cases, involving various nonparent custodians, have reaffirmed that holding (see e.g. Marcano v City of New York,
In the matter before us, plaintiff concedes not only that she was no longer in defendants’ custody at the time of the alleged assault, the taping having ended hours earlier, but that her mother and her legal guardian had resumed control over her and were supervising her, in their hotel room, at the time the driver initially made his attempt to contact plaintiff, and when plaintiff later absconded from her guardians. Yet, plaintiff argues that defendants, who were not in the hotel room and, in fact, had no discernible right to be there, had the duty to prevent her from “sneaking” away with an unidentified third party. Carried to its logical conclusion, the expanded orbit of duty urged by plaintiff would have required defendants to not only return her safely to her guardians, but to then continue to monitor the adequacy of the supervision provided by her guardians and, perhaps, to provide round-the-clock surveillance. It is also unclear, if the duty plaintiff seeks to impose on defendants would terminate at the airport, once plaintiff was home in Texas, or at some later date.
Plaintiffs, as well as the motion court’s reliance on Ernest v Red Cr. Cent. School Dist. (
Plaintiff also places somewhat heavy, although questionable reliance on Brown v New Commodore Cruise Line Ltd. (
In sum, the circumstances of this case do not warrant a finding that the incident which allegedly befell plaintiff falls within the defendants’ orbit of duty. We reach this conclusion after considering the relevant factors delineated above, and note that to expand the duty of care here to encompass plaintiff, who had left defendants’ physical custody and control and was returned to the supervision of her guardians, would place individuals that provide temporary care and supervision to minors at grave risk to a prohibitive number of lawsuits and concomitant liability. Accordingly, plaintiff’s cause of action sounding in negligence should have been dismissed.
Negligent Hiring and Retention
In those instances where an employer cannot be held vicariously liable for torts committed by its employee, the employer can still be held liable under theories of negligent hiring and negligent retention (Kenneth R. v Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn,
An essential element of a cause of action for negligent hiring and retention is that the employer knew, or should have known,
Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress
Plaintiffs first cause of action, as correctly noted by the motion court, sets forth mixed allegations of negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress. These claims center around assertions that defendants introduced plaintiff to her alleged assailant and had encouraged her to act promiscuously and disobey her guardians during the recording of the Show.
The tort of intentional infliction of emotional distress is a departure from the common law and has its roots in the acknowledgment by the courts of the need to provide relief in those circumstances where traditional theories of recovery do not (see Howell v New York Post Co.,
Moreover, a cause of action for either intentional or negligent infliction of emotional distress must be supported by allegations of conduct by the defendants “ ‘so outrageous in character, and so extreme in degree, as to go beyond all possible bounds of
In this matter, plaintiff’s allegations that defendants suggested she act provocatively, and allowed her to be introduced to a purported rapist, with whom she had a later, voluntary meeting, well after she was no longer in the physical custody of defendants, simply do not rise to the level of conduct necessary to sustain either cause of action. As a result, we find the motion court properly dismissed this claim.
Negligence Per Se
In Elliott v City of New York (
“A person is guilty of endangering the welfare of a child when: ... He knowingly acts in a manner likely to be injurious to the physical, mental or moral welfare of a child less than seventeen years old or directs or authorizes such child to engage in an occupation involving a substantial risk of danger to his life or health.”
The statute, however, rather than imposing a specific duty or rule of conduct, is “broadly written,” does not require “that the conduct be specifically directed at a child,” and “does not require a particular outcome or actions aimed at a specific individual; the crime is solely defined by the risk of injury produced by defendant’s conduct” (People v Johnson,
Plaintiffs argument that the statute is sufficiently specific to support a negligence per se claim because courts have rejected challenges by criminal defendants that it is unconstitutionally vague (see People v Padmore,
Accordingly, the order of the Supreme Court, New York County (Diane A. Lebedeff, J.), entered November 14, 2003, which, insofar as appealed from, granted defendants’ motion to dismiss the complaint, pursuant to CPLR 3211 (a) (7), to the extent of dismissing plaintiffs causes of action for infliction of emotional distress and negligence per se, and denied the motion with respect to plaintiffs claims for negligence and negligent hiring and retention, should be modified, on the law, the causes of action for negligence and negligent hiring and retention dismissed, and otherwise affirmed, without costs. The Clerk is directed to enter judgment in favor of defendants dismissing the complaint.
Sullivan, Williams, Friedman and Marlow, JJ., concur.
Order, Supreme Court, New York County, entered November 14, 2003, modified, on the law, the causes of action for negligence and negligent hiring and retention dismissed, and otherwise affirmed, without costs. The Clerk is directed to enter judgment in favor of defendants dismissing the complaint.
Notes
. The Court of Appeals in Murphy v American Home Prods. Corp. (
. Examples of cases in which the conduct prohibited by a particular statute was found sufficiently specific to support a negligence per se claim include: Ciatto v Lieberman (