Opinion ID: 1692753
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Employer of Independent Contractor's Duty of Care

Text: The general rule is that the employer of an independent contractor is not liable for physical harm caused to another by the acts or omissions of the contractor or his servants. Id. However, an employer of an independent contractor may be liable (1) if the employer retains control over the contractor's work or (2) if under the rule of law or statute, the employer has a nondelegable duty to protect another from harm caused by the contractor. Id. Summary judgment is proper only when the pleadings, depositions, stipulations, and affidavits in the record disclose that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact or as to the inferences that can be drawn from those facts and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Kramer v. Kramer, 252 Neb. 526, 567 N.W.2d 100 (1997). In reviewing a summary judgment, an appellate court views the evidence in a light most favorable to the party against whom the judgment is granted and gives such party the benefit of all reasonable inferences deducible from the evidence. Id. Therefore, we first examine the particular facts surrounding Whalen's injury to determine whether U S West retained sufficient control over the jobsite to owe Whalen an independent contractor's duty of care. U S West's alleged nondelegable duty will be addressed later in this opinion.