Opinion ID: 1624613
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Industry Standards

Text: To make a submissible case of negligence, a plaintiff must prove, inter alia, that the defendant breached a duty of care. A duty is a requirement to conform to a standard of conduct for the protection of others against unreasonable risks. Hoover's Dairy, Inc. v. Mid-America Dairymen, 700 S.W.2d 426, 431 (Mo. banc 1985); W. Prosser and W. Keeton, Prosser & Keeton on the Law of Torts, § 30 p. 164 (5th ed.1984). In this case, the parties held conflicting views as to the standard of conduct the electric cooperative was required to follow. Respondent Pierce attempted to prove that appellant breached its duty of ordinary care [1] by failing to place a marker on the guy wire. Appellant argues that it was not required by the National Electric Safety Code (NESC) to place a marker on a guy wire near a cultivated field. [2] Appellant claims its compliance with this industry safety standard is a complete defense. Evidence of industry custom or standard is admissible proof in a negligence case. Kungle v. Austin, 380 S.W.2d 354, 361 (Mo.1964). That the evidence is admissible does not terminate the inquiry, nor does evidence of conformance to such standards require a conclusion that a defendant did not breach its duty to the plaintiff. In Hannah v. Mallinckrodt, Inc., 633 S.W.2d 723 (Mo. banc 1982), the defendant maintained that the plaintiff had the burden to prove that defendant deviated from industry safety customs to make a submissible case of negligence. This Court rejected that argument. [A] person charged with negligence cannot excuse his misconduct by proving the same misconduct in otherscustom furnishes no excuse if the custom itself is negligent. [Citations omitted.] Id. at 725. In Freeman v. Kansas City Power and Light Co., 502 S.W.2d 277 (Mo.1973), this Court found the NESC to be an admission of a minimum standard of conduct within the electric industry. Compliance with that minimum was not, however, conclusive of a defendant's adherence to its duty of care. Id. at 283. The duty of care is an objective standard determined by what an ordinary careful and prudent person would have done under the same or similar circumstances. Industry customs or standards do not establish a legal standard of care. Fancher v. Southwest Missouri Truck Center, Inc., 618 S.W.2d 271, 274 (Mo.App.1981). Were we to permit industry standards to establish the legal standard of care, we would also permit industry to dictate the terms under which its members could be held liable for negligence.