Opinion ID: 1868013
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Public Policy Application

Text: ¶ 21 Here, the complaint states a claim for relief and the answer joins issue. The relevant facts relating to the attempted water abatement are not disputed. They show that the City contracted with the defendants to lower the water level in the Lake and that the defendants' efforts were not successful. Therefore, we conclude that the facts of record are sufficiently developed for us to undertake a public policy analysis. When we do so, we assume there is negligence and that the negligence was a cause of the injury, but for reasons of public policy, we prevent the claim from proceeding. [7] Cole, 272 Wis.2d 539, ¶ 7, 681 N.W.2d 147. ¶ 22 Although several of the six public policy factors could apply in this case, the sixth public policy factor, that imposing liability would enter a field that has no sensible or just stopping point, is the factor that compels us to preclude liability. Rockweit v. Senecal, 197 Wis.2d 409, 541 N.W.2d 742 (1995), provides a framework for our discussion. ¶ 23 In Rockweit, we determined, based on public policy, that a friend who visited a family around a campfire and was the last to leave the campfire could not be held liable for injuries sustained by a young child, who later fell into the un-extinguished fire's hot coals. In explaining our decision, we noted that the child's injuries could have occurred in exactly the same manner even if the friend had not been present at the campground. Id. at 428, 541 N.W.2d 742. We also noted that the child's parents were aware of the open hazard the fire's coals presented, yet they had not secured the child's safety. Id. We concluded that if liability could be imposed on the visiting friend for failing to extinguish the campfire, there would be no sensible or just stopping point as to whom could be held liable for a known hazard. Id. at 428-29, 541 N.W.2d 742. We noted the appropriateness of the question asked by the court of appeals: . . . [W]hen it comes to fires . . . is it the last adult to leave, the last person to put a log in the fire? Or is it the owner of the campsite? Or the person who started the campfire? Id. at 428, 541 N.W.2d 742. ¶ 24 The principles of Rockweit are similar to those we employ to preclude the defendants' liability in this case. For example, the natural hazard, flooding caused by the rising water level of the Lake, has been known for decades. Just as the plaintiffs in Rockweit were aware of the fire hazard, the plaintiffs in this case were aware of the flooding hazard surrounding the Lake; yet they continued to place themselves in harm's way, often by building dwellings below the 100-year floodplain for the Lake. When the potential for damage from the Lake's flooding was known and of an ongoing nature, should an unsatisfactory abatement effort serve as the source of recoverable damages? Just as we determined in our public policy analysis in Rockweit, it is probable that absent any act by the defendants, the plaintiffs, nevertheless, would have suffered damages. ¶ 25 If we were to permit liability against the defendants before us, we would be opening the door to property owners' claims against any contractor who contracts with a municipality to remediate a naturally occurring hazard, when the contractor fails to completely abate the hazard's effects. This broad exposure to liability would chill municipalities' efforts in attempting abatement projects. It could also chill contractors from bidding on those types of municipal projects; where in addition to being subject to a breach of contract action by the municipality [8] for not performing as they had contracted to perform, the contractors would be subject to litigation by any property owner who would have benefited from a successfully performed municipal contract. ¶ 26 Furthermore, permitting this claim to go forward could encourage lawsuits for any number of potentially negligent participants who have tried unsuccessfully to prevent flooding, over the long history of the Lake's rising water levels. This is a natural hazard that was amplified by development on the Lake. Should every failed effort at controlling the flooding bring a lawsuit? For example, if a retaining wall had been constructed in the hope of holding off rising water and the property flooded nevertheless, should that contractor also be held responsible for the damage to the plaintiff's or to neighboring residents' properties because the efforts were unsuccessful? ¶ 27 As in Rockweit, we conclude that to open the door for this type of claim would be to enter a field with no just or sensible stopping point. Therefore, we conclude that the defendants may not be held liable for their unsatisfactory abatement efforts and the dismissal of the plaintiffs' negligence claim was proper.