Title: Tantimonico v. Allendale Mut. Ins. Co.
Citation: 637 A.2d 1056
Docket Number: N/A
State: rhode-island
Issuer: rhode-island Supreme Court
Date: February 25, 1994

637 A.2d 1056 (1994) Guy TANTIMONICO, Jr. v. ALLENDALE MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY. John McPHILLIPS, Jr. v. ALLENDALE MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY et al. 92-484-Appeal. Supreme Court of Rhode Island. February 25, 1994. Frederick Costello, Lynch, Costello &amp; Friel, Warwick, Peter Mathieu, Dennis Baluch, Baluch, Mahoney &amp; Gianfrancesco, Providence, for plaintiffs. John Kershaw, Rice, Dolan &amp; Kershaw, Jeffrey Gladstone, Partridge, Snow &amp; Hahn, Providence, for defendant. SHEA, Justice. These consolidated cases are before the Supreme Court on the appeals of the plaintiffs from Superior Court orders granting the defendant's motions for summary judgment. For the reasons that follow we affirm. The facts of this case are not in dispute. On May 5, 1985, Guy Tantimonico, Jr., and John McPhillips, Jr. (plaintiffs), were riding motorcycles on a piece of undeveloped property owned by Allendale Mutual Insurance Company (defendant) located near its corporate headquarters in Johnston, Rhode Island. While independently riding their motorcycles on the property, plaintiffs, both in their twenties, collided head on with each other. Neither plaintiff can recall the specifics of the accident, but both Tantimonico and McPhillips suffered severe injuries that required extensive hospitalization. At the conclusion of the hearing on defendant's motions for summary judgment, the trial justice stated that he could find no legal duty that would support the actions against defendant and, that without a legal duty, no material facts were to be found because the question of law was dispositive of the entire matters. The plaintiffs argue on appeal that in light of this court's holding in Mariorenzi v. DiPonte, Inc., 114 R.I. 294, 333 A.2d 127 (1975), the trial justice erred in granting defendant's motions for summary judgment. In Mariorenzi a five-year-old trespasser at a construction *1057 site accidentally drowned in an excavation that had filled with water. On appeal, this court abolished the common-law distinctions between the duties owed to licensees, invitees, and trespassers and substituted the tort test of reasonableness. We now take this opportunity to depart from the holding in Mariorenzi as it pertains to trespassers. Traditionally at common law the possessor of land owed a trespasser Rhode Island followed the common law status categories, and in Previte v. Wanskuck Co., 80 R.I. 1, 3, 90 A.2d 769, 770 (1952), this court stated that "in the ordinary case under the established law in this state no duty is owed a trespasser by a landowner except to refrain from injuring him wantonly or wilfully after discovering his peril." Many jurisdictions carved out exceptions to the common-law status categories, and in 1957 Great Britain's Parliament enacted a statute abolishing the distinction between licensees and invitees. See Occupier's Liability Act, 5 &amp; 6 Eliz. 2, c. 31 (1957). In Kermarec v. Compagnie Generale Transatlantique, 358 U.S. 625, 79 S. Ct. 406, 3 L. Ed. 2d 550 (1959), the Supreme Court expressed its dissatisfaction with the common-law distinctions between licensees and invitees when it refused to extend them to maritime law. The Court stated: The Court went on to hold that "the owner of a ship in navigable waters owes to all who are on board for purposes not inimical to his legitimate interests the duty of exercising reasonable care under the circumstances of each case." Id. at 632, 79 S. Ct. at 410, 3 L. Ed. 2d at 555. That holding would in all likelihood not include a duty to a trespasser. It was not until the Supreme Court of California issued its opinion in Rowland v. Christian, 69 Cal. 2d 108, 443 P.2d 561, 70 Cal. Rptr. 97 (1968), that the common-law categories were judicially abrogated in a United States jurisdiction. The California court stated: In the wake of Rowland, this court in Mariorenzi cited opinions from a limited number of jurisdictions that purportedly followed the California lead by totally abrogating the common-law status categories. See Smith v. Arbaugh's Restaurant, Inc., 469 F.2d 97 (D.C. Cir.1972), cert. denied, 412 U.S. 939, 93 S. Ct. 2774, 37 L. Ed. 2d 399 (1973); Webb v. City of Sitka, 561 P.2d 731 (Alaska 1977); Mile High Fence Co. v. Radovich, 175 Colo. 537, 489 P.2d 308 (1971); Pickard v. City and County of Honolulu, 51 Hawaii 134, 452 P.2d 445 (1969); Cates v. Beauregard Electric Cooperative, Inc., 328 So. 2d 367 (La. 1976); Ouellette v. Blanchard, 116 N.H. 552, 364 A.2d 631 (1976); Basso v. Miller, 40 N.Y.2d 233, 352 N.E.2d 868, 386 N.Y.S.2d 564 (1976). As Justice Joslin pointed out in his dissent, however, none of these cases involved an injury to a trespasser. Other jurisdictions repudiated the distinctions between licensee and invitee but retained limited-duty rules for trespassers. Poulin v. Colby College, 402 A.2d 846 (Me. 1979); Mounsey v. Ellard, 363 Mass. 693, 297 N.E.2d 43 (1973); Peterson v. Balach, 294 Minn. 161, 199 N.W.2d 639 (1972); O'Leary v. Coenen, 251 N.W.2d 746 (N.D. 1977); Antoniewicz v. Reszcynski, 70 Wis.2d 836, 236 N.W.2d 1 (1975). Although repudiation or modification of the common-law status categories took effect in the above jurisdictions, by the late seventies an increasing number of courts had specifically rejected Rowland. See Whaley v. Lawing, 352 So. 2d 1090 (Ala. 1977); Wood v. Camp, 284 So. 2d 691 (Fla. 1973); Gerchberg v. Loney, 223 Kan. 446, 576 P.2d 593 (1978); Sherman v. Suburban Trust Co., 282 Md. 238, 384 A.2d 76 (1978); Sutherland v. Saint Francis Hospital, Inc., 595 P.2d 780 (Okla. 1979); Buchholz v. Steitz, 463 S.W.2d 451 (Tex.Civ.App. 1971); Tjas v. Proctor, 591 P.2d 438 (Utah 1979). Others had postponed considering the repudiation of the categories, and still others simply reaffirmed the traditional classifications. See Page, The Law of Premises Liability at 139-40 (2d ed. 1988). In Mariorenzi this court stated that it was giving a "final but fitting interment" to all three common-law categories. 114 R.I. at 307, 333 A.2d at 133. It also stated: Justice Joslin, however, dissented, stating: At the time the Mariorenzi accident occurred, there was no statutory or case law in this state that addressed the special concerns for the infant trespasser. The so-called attractive-nuisance or trespassing-child doctrine was not recognized in this state until Haddad v. First National Stores, Inc., 109 R.I. 59, 280 A.2d 93 (1971), in which this court adopted the standard set out in the Restatement (Second) Torts § 339 (1965). In Haddad the adoption was given strictly prospective application. The case at bar is the incarnation of the worst fears of many opponents to the movement away from common-law status categories. In Ouellette v. Blanchard, 116 N.H. 552, 364 A.2d 631 (1976), the Supreme Court of New Hampshire abolished the distinction among invitees, licensees, and trespassers. Justice Grimes of that court, in a vigorous dissent, wrote: Justice Grimes continued: *1060 Similarly, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts had stated in Mounsey v. Ellard, 363 Mass. 693, 297 N.E.2d 43 (1973): The more recent trend in premises-liability law is to uphold the traditional common-law categories. In Kirschner v. Louisville Gas &amp; Electric Co., 743 S.W.2d 840 (Ky. 1988), the Supreme Court of Kentucky stated: In denying relief to the appellants for injuries to their two-year-old son stemming from oxygen deprivation suffered after falling into a pond while trespassing on the appellee's property, the Supreme Court of Oklahoma declared: The Oklahoma Court continued: Other recent cases that have upheld the common-law status categories are: Nicoletti v. Westcor, Inc., 131 Ariz. 140, 639 P.2d 330 (1982); Murphy v. Baltimore Gas &amp; Elec. Co., 290 Md. 186, 428 A.2d 459 (1981); Buchanan v. Prickett &amp; Son, Inc., 203 Neb. 684, 279 N.W.2d 855 (1979); Caroff v. Liberty Lumber Co., 146 N.J. Super 353, 369 A.2d 983 (1977). See also Annot. Modern Status of Rules Conditioning Landowner's Liability Upon Status of Injured Party as Invitee, Licensee, or Trespasser, 22 A.L.R. 4th 294, 310-314 (1983). It is interesting to note that in 1978, three years after Mariorenzi was decided, the General Assembly enacted chapter 6 of title 32 of the General Laws. P.L. 1978, ch. 375, § 1 (codified at G.L. 1956 (1982 Reenactment) §§ 32-6-1 through 32-6-7). In general that statute provides that a landowner who either directly or indirectly invites or permits without charge any person to use the property for recreational purposes does not thereby confer upon such person the legal status of invitee or licensee to whom a duty of care is owed. Section 32-6-3. As pointed out in the amicus brief, the obvious intention of the Legislature was to treat those who use private property for recreational purposes as though they were trespassers. This indicates that to accomplish the objective of opening up land to meet the growing public demand for recreational space, the Legislature resurrected the landowner's common-law immunity as to trespassers prior to Mariorenzi. The Legislature appears to have made a judgment that the social benefits of *1061 resurrecting the common-law classification at least for this purpose outweighed the costs to recreational users. The Legislature also addressed Justice Grimes' fear that "a burglar who was injured would be able to put the landowner to the risk of a jury decision" by enacting G.L. 1956 (1985 Reenactment) § 9-1-46, as amended by P.L. 1986, ch. 473 § 1, entitled "Affirmative defense of trespasser's intent to commit a crime."[1] Section 9-1-46 provides: We concede that neither of these statutes applies literally to the facts before us. However, to allow plaintiffs to maintain these actions would make landowners liable to trespassers injured while using their land for recreational use without permission, yet persons who use the land for recreation with the landowner's permission would be treated as trespassers not entitled to recovery. At the same time actual trespassers, who use the land for recreational purposes without the owner's consent, would be treated as entitled to the same degree of care as invitees. In the case at bar we are presented with two adults who chose to ride their motorcycles on defendant's property without permission. Clearly plaintiffs were trespassers. They entered the land without permission solely for the purpose of riding their motorcycles. As previously noted, the memory loss caused by the severity of the injuries they sustained prevents either plaintiff from recalling the specifics of the accident. However, from the physical facts it would appear that they collided head-on on a circular trial. It would not be unreasonable to conclude from the known facts and the nature of their injuries that plaintiffs were operating their vehicles in a grossly negligent manner, which resulted in dire consequences for them. It is almost impossible to entertain the notion that anyone other than plaintiffs themselves is responsible for their injuries. To hold the property owner liable for injuries brought about by a plaintiff's negligent behavior would be patently ludicrous. The plaintiffs claim that we reaffirmed Mariorenzi in Banks v. Bowen's Landing Corp., 522 A.2d 1222 (R.I. 1987). Without question we cited and distinguished Mariorenzi in holding that the owner of Bowen's Wharf Company owed no duty to an inebriated patron of a nearby drinking establishment to prevent him from leaping off a ramp into Newport Harbor. Id. at 1226. The complex application of factors that we borrowed from the California Court of Appeals in Thompson v. County of Alameda, 27 Cal. 3d 741, 750, 614 P.2d 728, 732-33, 167 Cal. Rptr. 70, 74-75 (1980), necessary to distinguish Mariorenzi is illustrative of the extreme difficulty encountered in determining the liability of an owner or occupier of land or structures in relation to a trespasser. The simplicity of the common-law rule with respect to trespassers would eliminate the mental gymnastics required by Banks, and by the present case, if the Mariorenzi rule were to be retained. Property owners have a basic right to be free from liability to those who engage in self-destructive activity on their premises without permission. The common-law rule developed over the centuries accomplishes this purpose clearly and without equivocation. We conclude, therefore, that this landowner owed these plaintiffs no duty save to refrain from willful or wanton injury. To hold the defendant accountable would be tantamount *1062 to imposing strict liability upon every landowner in this jurisdiction. Consequently we depart from Mariorenzi as it applies to trespassers. We decline to comment on the other aspects of the holding in Mariorenzi as no issues involving invitees or licensees are before us. For these reasons the plaintiffs' appeals are denied and dismissed, the judgments appealed from are affirmed, and the papers of the case are remanded to the Superior Court. [1] It is important to recognize that the plaintiff in Mariorenzi v. DiPonte, Inc., 114 R.I. 294, 333 A.2d 127 (1975) would not be precluded from a remedy by this opinion. Haddad v. First National Stores, Inc., 109 R.I. 59, 280 A.2d 93 (1971) made available recovery under the attractive-nuisance or the trespassing-child doctrine. As noted earlier this doctrine was unavailable for the estate of Thomas Mariorenzi because his accidental death preceded Haddad by approximately ten years.