Opinion ID: 2632335
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Gates v. Richardson Policy Factors Analysis

Text: [¶ 44] In order to conclude the scope of the duty requires livestock owners to do anything to prevent livestock from wandering onto highways in posted open range, this court must consider the factors adopted in Gates v. Richardson, 719 P.2d 193, 196 (Wyo. 1986), and conclude a plaintiff's interests are entitled to legal protection against a defendant's otherwise legal conduct. The plaintiffs' argument that this court should establish a more expansive duty does not survive this analysis. `[D]uty' is not sacrosanct in itself, but is only an expression of the sum total of those considerations of policy which lead the law to say that the plaintiff is entitled to protection. Gates, 719 P.2d at 195; see also W. Page Keeton et al., Prosser and Keeton on the Law of Torts § 54 at 357-58 (5th ed.1984). When this Court has considered whether a duty should be imposed based on a particular relationship, we have balanced numerous factors to aid in that determination: (1) the foreseeability of harm to the plaintiff, (2) the closeness of the connection between the defendant's conduct and the injury suffered, (3) the degree of certainty that the plaintiff suffered injury, (4) the moral blame attached to the defendant's conduct, (5) the policy of preventing future harm, (6) the extent of the burden upon the defendant, (7) the consequences to the community and the court system, and (8) the availability, cost and prevalence of insurance for the risk involved. Ortega v. Flaim, 902 P.2d 199, 203, 206 (Wyo.1995) (quoting Mostert v. CBL & Associates, 741 P.2d 1090, 1094 (Wyo.1987), citing to Gates v. Richardson, 719 P.2d 193, 196 (Wyo. 1986), quoting Tarasoff v. Regents of University of California, 17 Cal.3d 425, 131 Cal.Rptr. 14, 551 P.2d 334, 342 (1976)). Duncan v. Afton, Inc., 991 P.2d 739, 744 (Wyo.1999) (footnote omitted). Those factors, evaluated under the facts of this case as follows, do not support a new duty to prevent livestock from wandering onto unfenced roads in posted open range: (a) A livestock owner, though not constantly supervising his animals, may arguably foresee people could drive their cars in such fashion so as to collide with livestock on posted open range roads. However, the motorists on a posted open range highway, being forewarned, have greater capacity to foresee the potential danger by viewing the road at the exact time in question, to make affirmative choices whether to travel the road despite its open range status, to choose the time of day they will be on the road, and to determine the speed and manner of the operation of their vehicles. In this case, the road was marked by open range signs, and the passenger testified that she and the driver had seen those signs. Even so, the plaintiffs argue something more should have been done to alert the drivers that cattle were on the road at the precise time of the accidents, such as flashing lights activated when cattle were present. However, given the wandering nature of livestock, such additional precautions would accomplish no more than the posted signs indicating open range. Cattle naturally grazing in open range pose no greater risk of harm to motorists than indigenous wildlife, such as antelope or deer, which might by happenstance be grazing in the vicinity of the same road. Because motorists were advised in advance that cattle could likely be on and around this stretch of road, the cattle actually presented less of a danger than naturally roaming wildlife. The fact that the cattle were of the black Angus breed would admittedly make them difficult to see on a dark night. However, this circumstance by itself is insufficient to justify imposition of a greater duty on black Angus owners to prevent their cattle from wandering onto roadways in posted open range. (b) There is little connection between Two Dot's conduct grazing cattle in a large area known to be posted open range and the injury suffered. There was no other conduct on the part of Two Dot. No one alleged Two Dot drove the cattle onto the roadway in front of moving vehicles or took any action to encourage the cattle to be on the road surface. The plaintiffs have asserted the cattle were on BLM land that, although leased and grazed in the past by Two Dot, at the time of the accident was in a period of rest and contend this conduct occasioned the fatal accident. This argument is a red herring. The question of whether Two Dot was trespassing on BLM land is solely an issue between the BLM and Two Dot. The plaintiffs provided no evidence any of the drivers or other plaintiffs acted either upon knowledge of lease arrangements or on the fact the BLM intended to keep this pasture in a resting state. The area in question was land upon which cattle, by custom, license, lease, or permit, were grazed or permitted to roam. Hubbard v. Howard, 758 F.Supp. 594, 596 (D.Idaho 1990), aff'd, 927 F.2d 609 (9th Cir.1991); Greer v. Ellsworth, 113 Idaho 979, 751 P.2d 675 (Ct. App.1988). The plaintiffs also contend that, once notified by the BLM that the cattle had entered the open range despite the BLM's grazing restrictions in effect at the time, Two Dot had a duty to the traveling public to remove the cattle promptly. Again, the plaintiffs confuse the issue of a possible trespass, a matter between only the BLM and Two Dot, with an alleged tort duty to prevent the livestock from wandering onto an unfenced roadway in open range. Given there was no duty to keep livestock off the unfenced roadway in the first place, Two Dot had no obligation to the plaintiffs to remove the cattle from the open range. The simple exercise of the right to pasture cattle on open range does not constitute the kind of conduct necessary to invoke, for policy reasons, an expanded duty of care essentially nullifying the intended purpose and benefits of the open range doctrine. (c) There can be no doubt as to the degree of certainty the plaintiffs suffered injury. Tragically, two people were killed, and two others were injured. (d) No moral blame can be attached to Two Dot's conduct. Two Dot was merely pasturing its cattle in open range, no more no less, and this carries with it no negative moral connotation of any kind. (e) Preventing future harm can only be fully assured through physically restraining livestock from wandering across roads by fencing them. Imposing such a broad duty, essentially nullifying the open range doctrine, is not prudent absent legislative participation and direction. The boards of county commissioners and local landowners, who are most attuned to the potential danger presented by a posted open range road in their locale, have had the statutory authority since at least 1984 to regulate livestock running at large in their counties. An expansive remedy, if one is truly required, has been available for a long time. (f) The burden that would be placed on Two Dot by the creation of a broadened duty is substantial. Livestock owners would no longer be able to graze their livestock without being exposed to liability based on the limited intellect and behavioral vagaries of the animals they raise. Absent construction of hundreds of miles of expensive fencing, the livestock industry would be exposed to a large and unpredictable risk. (g) The consequences to the community from the danger of collisions with livestock on open range are no greater than have existed over the past many decades of high speed motorized travel. It is significant that this is the first case of its kind to be considered by this court despite the state's longstanding open range doctrine and the increase in motor vehicle travel over the years. Statistically, motorist/cow collisions resulting in injuries are not significant in number or percentage of all motorist collisions resulting in injuries. By way of example, in 1999 there were 4,071 motor vehicle accidents resulting in injury and only thirty-seven of these involved a motorist/cow collision. It cannot be discerned from the report how many of these occurred on fenced highways as opposed to posted open range. Wyoming's Comprehensive Report on Traffic Crashes at 14 (1999). We can safely assume the number of posted open range accidents was less than the total number of thirty-seven. Obviously, in the context of all motor vehicle accidents resulting in injuries, motorist/livestock accidents on posted open range do not present a large or extraordinary risk. On the other hand, the consequences to the community from imposition of an expanded duty could be very great. Such a duty could conceivably eliminate the open range as it has been known in Wyoming since the territorial days and impose additional obstacles to migrating wildlife. It would also extinguish local assessment and control of the open range and roadways as superfluous functions. (h) Based on the number of motorist/cow collisions resulting in injury, discussed above, we can anticipate that the consequence to our court system would not be onerous or extreme. (i) The final policy consideration is whether there is insurance available, prevalent, and at an affordable cost. This requires a high degree of speculation. It is most likely available to ranchers. For a price, insurance can be obtained to cover almost any imaginable risk. Is it prevalent? Probably not given Wyoming has been long known as a fence out state and the cost is likely high because of the unpredictable nature of the risk. No doubt the total economic costs of imposition of an expanded duty, including both insurance and fencing or other livestock management techniques, would likely have a negative impact on the livestock industry. It is also relevant that affordable insurance, which spreads the risk among a much broader participant pool, has been available to motorists for a long time. [¶ 45] We have recognized there is a reciprocal and general duty of care owed by livestock owners pasturing animals in posted open range and motorists driving on unfenced highways passing through the open range area. Consistent with our review of the open range doctrine, the applicable statutes, the case law, and the Gates factors, that duty does not require a livestock owner to prevent livestock from wandering onto public highways so long as the area is posted as open range. That is all the plaintiffs alleged was done by Two Dot in this case. Furthermore, Two Dot owed no duty to the plaintiffs to remove the livestock when notified by the BLM they were in the pasture despite the grazing restriction. While circumstances could arise where other actions of a livestock owner on open range, beyond allowing livestock to wander onto a public roadway, could be considered unreasonable, we will not attempt to identify such circumstances until they are presented to us. We affirm the district court's order granting summary judgment in favor of Two Dot.