Opinion ID: 2428991
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Delta's status as an independent contractor.

Text: The standard of review of the denial of a motion for a directed verdict is whether the jury's verdict is supported by substantial evidence; substantial evidence is defined as evidence of sufficient force and character to compel a conclusion one way or the other with reasonable certainty; it must force the mind to pass beyond suspicion or conjecture; when determining the sufficiency of the evidence, the supreme court reviews the evidence and all reasonable inferences arising therefrom in the light most favorable to the party on whose behalf judgment was entered. Union Pac. R.R. Co. v. Sharp, 330 Ark. 174, 952 S.W.2d 658 (1997); Ouachita Wilderness Inst. v. Mergen, 329 Ark. 405, 947 S.W.2d 780 (1997). In the Dickens case, supra, property owners sued their insurer after the insurer had recommended a home repair contractor, whom the property owners later alleged had negligently repaired their home. After judgment was entered for the property owners, the matter was appealedthe only issue on appeal being the propriety of the trial court's ruling that the contractor was, as a matter of law, the agent of the insurer and not an independent contractor. In this Court's holding in Dickens that the repairman was an independent contractor, we reasoned that the following factors be considered, citing § 220 of the Restatement (Second) of Agency: (1) the extent of control which, by the agreement, the master may exercise over the details of the work; (2) whether or not the one employed is engaged in a distinct occupation or business; (3) the kind of occupation, with reference to whether in the locality, the work is usually done under the direction of the employer or by a specialist without supervision; (4) the skill required in the particular occupation; (5) whether the employer or the workman supplies the instrumentalities, tools, and the place of work for the person doing the work; (6) the length of time for which the person is employed; (7) the method of payment, whether by the time or by the job; (8) whether or not the work is a part of the regular business of the employer; (9) whether or not the parties believe they are creating the relation of master and servant; and (10) whether the principal is or is not in business. Id. at 517, 868 S.W.2d 476. This Court reasoned that the right of control is the principal factor in determining whether the relationship is one of agency or independent contractor. When the factors cited in Dickens are applied to the record in this case, it is clear that there was never any substantial evidence from which the trial court could have determined that the jury could find Delta to be an agent of appellant, and not an independent contractor. On the contrary, the evidence submitted to the jury leads to the conclusion that a finding of agency could have only been based on mere suspicion or conjecture, Ouachita Wilderness Institute, Inc. v. Mergen, 329 Ark. 405, 947 S.W.2d 780 (1997), requiring a ruling on behalf of the trial court that Delta was, as a matter of law, an independent contractor. At the trial of this matter, Gary Inman, appellant's warehouse manager at the time of Sanders's death, testified that the only business activity ever conducted at the warehouse was that of storing cotton, and that neither the warehouse nor any of its employees ever participated in the roofing business in any way. Inman testified that upon a decision being made to have the roof painted, three bids were collected from three different contractors. Delta, Sanders's employer, was selected to do the work. Gary Carpenter, owner of Delta, testified that Delta's business activity regularly included carpentry work, roof repair, room additions, the construction of steel buildings, and all phases [of] construction. Carpenter testified that prior to submitting Delta's bid to the appellant, he, unattended by any representative or employee of the appellant, visited the warehouse for the purpose of taking measurements and walking all four sides of the building. Carpenter testified that upon Delta's bid being accepted by the appellant, Carpenter again revisited the warehouse, unattended by any Griffin representative, and walked over the warehouse roof, making his calculations. He explained that he understood Delta was to supply the material, the labor, the management, and the clean-up thereafter to complete the job. Carpenter further testified that appellant had paid an unitemized fee for the entire job. It played no role in deciding what materials Delta would use to complete the work; it played no role in deciding which of Delta's employees would complete the work; it played no role in deciding when the work would begin or be completed; it played no role in deciding how the paint would be applied; and, it played no role in deciding how the warehouse roof surface would be prepared for painting. Carpenter's testimony was corroborated by the testimony of the Delta employees who actually completed the work on the warehouse, David Anderson and Odell Davis. Anderson testified that when he, along with Sanders and Davis, arrived at the Griffin warehouse to begin the work, there were no Griffin representatives present at the warehouse and that the Delta employees opened Griffin's gates with a key they had been given. Further, he testified that the Delta employees were not given by appellant any of the supplies or equipment needed to complete the work and that no representative of appellant ever attempted to supervise the Delta employees. On the contrary, Anderson explained that the work at the Griffin warehouse occurred as would any normal subcontract work performed by Delta. In short, pursuant to Dickens , the right of control in the case at bar clearly belonged to Delta, thereby classifying Delta as an independent contractor to the appellant. Sanders was clearly, as a matter of law, the employee of an independent contractor. The trial court erred in not directing a verdict in favor of appellant on this issue.