Court Opinion

ID: 9856399
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 06:46:44.033196+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:38:43.270427
License: Public Domain

CaplaN, Judge,
dissenting:
Respectifully, I dissent from the Court’s decision as expressed in its opinion. My disagreement is not with the principles of law expressed in that opinion hut rather with the application of the law to the facts as revealed by the record.
That the subject transaction between the City of Elkins and E. A. Taylor and Sons, Inc. constituted a relationship of employer or owner and independent contractor has not been disputed by the parties; nor do I here dispute the existence of such relationship. Undoubtedly the contractor enjoyed general freedom in the construction of the sewer. However, this freedom was not total and complete, as acknowledged by the majority which said: “An over-all reading of the contract, and particularly the provisions quoted, shows unambiguously that the City of Elkins retained control and the right to have an inspector on the premises only to insure that the grade, direction, material and workmanship complied with specifications of the contract.”
It is my belief that, by reason of the language of the contract, the control retained by the City of Elkins extended beyond the mere physical specifications of the sewer construction and also covered consideration of safety of the workmen. My interpretation of the contract differs from that of the majority. The inspector, an employee of the City of Elkins, in my opinion, had greater authority. The contract provided *841on page 16 thereof as follows: “In case of any dispute arising between the contractor and the Inspector as to materials furnished or the manner of performing the work, the Inspector shall have the authority to reject materials or suspend the work until the question at issue can be referred to and decided by the engineer.” (Italics supplied.) The engineer, too, was an employee of the City. On pages 17 and 18 of the contract the engineer was authorized to suspend the work in whole or in part due to conditions considered unfavorable for the suitable prosecution of the work.
The contract provided that “Precaution shall be exercised at all times for the protection of persons (including employees) and property.” It was further provided therein that the contractor shall comply with “all Federal, State, Local and Municipal laws, ordinances, rules and regulations in any manner affecting the work ***.” (Italics supplied.) Pursuant to the authority granted in Code, 1931, 21-3, as amended, the West Virginia Department of Labor promulgated a safety code for construction, one section of which provides:
“The sides of every excavation four (4) feet deep or more in depth, where there is danger of slides or cave-ins, shall be supported by substantially braced sheet piling or shoring unless the sides of the excavation are sloped to the angle of repose of the material being excavated. ’ ’
Other sections of that code indicated a concern for safety where excavation work was involved. It occurs to me that these provisions of the contract show a definite concern by the City of Elkins for the safety of the workers and when it retained control to the extent of being able to suspend operations due to the unsatisfactory “manner of performing the work” or by reason of ‘ ‘ other conditions as are considered unfavorable for the suitable.prosecution of the work,” such concern with safe conditions of work was made meaningful.
*842The “manner of performing the work,” in my opinion, does not, as related by the majority, refer only to obtaining a satisfactory complete and workable sewer system. It relates also to the compliance with all laws, rules and regulations pertaining to the safety of employees. In other words, if the contractor failed to comply with acknowledged safety regulations, the city, through its employees, the inspector and engineer, could suspend operations. If this were not the city’s intention and admitted obligation, what was the need for an indemnification clause? After providing for the observance of and compliance with all laws, as set out above, the contract continued:
and shall indemnify and save harmless the Owner and all of its officers, agents and servants against any claim or liability arising from or based on the violation of any such law, ordinance, rule, regulation, order or decree, whether such violations be by the contractor, or any subcontractor, or any of their agents and/or employees.”
The city obviously recognized its duties and responsibilities in relation to injuries caused by noncompliance with the aforementioned laws, rules and regulations.
I do not believe that the city was interested only in getting value for money expended. By the provisions of the contract it retained control of the project to the extent that it could have insisted that the work was done safely. The safety precautions demanded by regulations which had the force of law were ignored, resulting in injuries which caused the death of three workmen. It was the city’s obligation to see that such safety precautions were taken or to suspend the job until they were. I, therefore, disagree with the application of the law stated in Syllabus No. 1 of the Court’s opinion, believing that the City of Elkins did have the authority to exercise meaningful supervision and control over this project in relation to the safety of the workmen.
*843The case of Quinones v. Township of Upper Moreland, 293 F. 2d 237, presents a factual situation, including a contract between a municipality and a contractor, very similar to the instant case. Therein, as noted in the majority opinion, the court affirmed the jury’s fact-finding that the Township had retained control in the performance of the contract and was negligent in not having required the contractor to shore the trench in conformity with Pennsylvania law relative to regulation of trenches and excavations. I am in accord with the court’s decision in that case and with the principles expressed in its opinion.
In view of the foregoing it is my opinion that the failure of the City of Elkins to perform its duty to see that the work was done in compliance with recognized safety regulations constituted negligence. Therefore, I would reverse the judgment of the Circuit Court of Kanawha County.