Court Opinion

ID: 9600324
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 01:26:01.933627+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:02:33.073287
License: Public Domain

Tyson, Judge
concurring in part, dissenting in part.
The majority’s opinion holds: (1) the Division of Forest Resources failed to properly preserve for appellate review its assignment of error concerning third-party plaintiffs failure to allege waiver of immunity; (2) the public duty doctrine does not shield the Division of Forest Resources from liability resulting from claims of negligence against a forest ranger; (3) the North Carolina Division of Forest Resources failed to properly preserve for appellate review its assignment of error concerning the dismissal of individual claims against Michael Bennett; and (4) Ms. Myers may pursue her claims against the State in Superior Court. I concur with the determination of issues three and four above in the majority’s opinion. However, I respectfully dissent from the analysis and holding regarding issues one and two above in the majority’s opinion.
I. Sufficiency of Complaint
“It has long been the established law of North Carolina that the State cannot be sued except with its consent or upon its waiver of immunity.” Paul L. Whitfield, P.A. v. Gilchrist, 348 N.C. 39, 42, 497 S.E.2d 412, 414 (1998) (citing Guthrie v. N.C. State Ports Auth., 307 N.C. 522, 534, 299 S.E.2d 618, 625 (1983)). A plaintiff asserting causes of action against the State must allege in their complaint the State *512waived its sovereign immunity. Paquette v. County of Durham, 155 N.C. App. 415, 418, 573 S.E.2d 715, 717 (2002) (citing Clark v. Burke County, 117 N.C. App. 85, 88, 450 S.E.2d 747, 748 (1994)), disc. rev. denied, 357 N.C. 165, 580 S.E.2d 695 (2003). Without an “allegation of waiver in the plaintiffs complaint, the plaintiff is absolutely barred from suing the State ... in an action for negligence.” Vest v. Easley, 145 N.C. App. 70, 74, 549 S.E.2d 568, 573 (2001).
The majority’s opinion dismisses the Division of Forest Resources’ assignment of error concerning the sufficiency of third-party plaintiffs’ complaint for failure to raise the issue at the trial court level. It asserts “the Division of Forest Resources raised this argument neither in its motions to dismiss nor at the hearing.” I disagree.
It is undisputed that third-party plaintiffs failed to include in their complaint alleging negligence against the Division of Forest Resources: (1) an assertion of waiver of immunity by the State (the State stipuláted third-party plaintiffs Foust and Spencer asserted waiver of immunity); or (2) made any mention of the Tort Claims Act. In response to this complaint, the Division of Forest Resources filed a motion to dismiss “pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), (2), (6), and 12(c) of the N.C. Rules of Civil Procedure.” The majority’s opinion holds the State’s motion was not sufficient to preserve the issue for appellate review. I disagree.
A. Essential Elements
When a plaintiff asserts negligence against the State, five elements must be alleged. The first four comprise common law negligence. See Tise v. Yates Construction Co., Inc., 345 N.C. 456, 460, 480 S.E.2d 677, 680 (1997) (a legal duty, breach of that duty, and injury proximately caused by the breach). The fifth is the waiver of immunity by the State. Paquette, 155 N.C. App. at 418, 573 S.E.2d at 717; Vest, 145 N.C. App. at 74, 549 S.E.2d at 573. The complaints at bar fail to include an allegation of waiver by the Statute. Under a 12(b)(6) motion for failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted, third-party plaintiffs’ complaint must be dismissed for failure to allege all the necessary elements of their claim. Harris v. NCNB, 85 N.C. App. 669, 670, 355 S.E.2d 838, 840 (1987) (On a motion to dismiss, the standard of review is “whether as a matter of law, the allegations of the complaint, treated as true, are sufficient to state a claim upon which relief can be granted under some legal theory.”); Lynn v. Overlook Development, 328 N.C. 689, 692, 403 S.E.2d 469, 471 (1991) *513(whether allegations sufficient to state a claim upon which relief can be granted under some legal theory).
B. Preservation of Error
Under Rule 10(b)(1) of the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure, “[i]n order to preserve a question for appellate review, a party must have presented to the trial court a timely request, objection or motion, stating the specific grounds for the ruling the party desired the court to make if the specific grounds were not apparent from the context.” N.C.R. App. P. 10(b)(1) (2004). A party may not raise a new theory to the case for the first time on appeal. Weil v. Herring, 207 N.C. 6, 10, 175 S.E. 836, 838 (1934) (“the law does not permit parties to swap horses between courts in order to get a better mount” on appeal).
N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1A-1, Rule 46(b) (2003) states:
With respect to pretrial rulings, interlocutory orders, trial rulings, and other orders of the court not directed to the admissibility of evidence, formal objections and exceptions are unnecessary. In order to preserve an exception to any such ruling or order or to the court’s failure to make any such ruling or order, it shall be sufficient if a party, at the time the ruling or order is made or sought, makes known to the court the party’s objection to the action of the court or makes known the action that the party desires the court to take and the party’s grounds for its position. If a party has no opportunity to object or except to a ruling or order at the time it is made, the absence of an objection or exception does not thereafter prejudice that party.
This Court held in Barbour v. Little:
Under G.S. 1A-1, Rule 46(b), with respect to rulings and orders of the trial court not directed to admissibility of evidence, no formal objections or exceptions are necessary, it being sufficient to preserve an exception that the party, at the time the ruling or order is made or sought, makes known to the court his objection to the action of the court or makes known the action which he desires the court to take and his ground therefor. This the defendants did when they filed their motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6). No further action by defendants in the trial court was required to preserve their exception. In the record on appeal defendants properly set out their exception to [the trial court’s] order, as they were expressly permitted to do by Rule 10(d) of the Rules of *514Appellate Procedure. We find that the question of the validity of [the trial court’s] order denying defendants motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) has been properly preserved by defendants’ cross assignment of error and is before us on this appeal.
37 N.C. App. 686, 692-93, 247 S.E.2d 252, 256 (emphasis supplied), cert. denied, 295 N.C. 733, 248 S.E.2d 862 (1978); see also Inman v. Inman, 136 N.C. App. 707, 711-12, 525 S.E.2d 820, 823 (pursuant to Rule 46(b) of the North Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure, defendants who filed a motion to dismiss under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1A-1, Rule 12(b)(6) were not required to take further action in the trial court in order to preserve their exception), cert. denied, 351 N.C. 641, 543 S.E.2d 870 (2000).
The Division of Forest Resources properly preserved the assigned error for our review and stated the State’s “grounds for its position.” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1A-1, Rule 46(b); Barbour, 37 N.C. App. at 693, 247 S.E.2d at 256; Inman, 136 N.C. App. at 711-12, 525 S.E.2d at 823. The State moved the trial court to dismiss third-party plaintiffs’ complaint for lack of “subject matter jurisdiction, personal jurisdiction, and [failure] to state a claim for which relief may be granted pursuant to the public duty doctrine . . . .” The State is not required by statute or case law to further specifically state in its pleadings or during the motion hearing that third-party plaintiffs failed to allege waiver of immunity. Id. The assigned error was preserved for appellate review. Without an allegation of waiver of immunity, third-party plaintiffs “failed to state a claim” against the State by asserting all five required elements to allege negligence against the State. The trial court should have granted the State’s motion.
II. The Public Duty Doctrine
Following a discussion of our Supreme Court’s decisions on the subject, the majority’s opinion holds, “it appears that the public duty doctrine applies where plaintiffs allege negligence through (a) failure of law enforcement to provide protection from the misconduct of others, and (b) failure of state departments or agencies to detect and prevent misconduct of others through improper inspections.” I disagree with the analysis and holding in the majority’s opinion on the merits.
A. Stone v. N.C. Pent, of Labor
In Braswell, our Supreme Court initially recognized the public duty doctrine as an exception to the Tort Claims Act for municipali*515ties, political subdivision, and their agents. 330 N.C. at 370-71, 410 S.E.2d at 901-02 (applied to a county sheriff). In Stone, the Court extended the doctrine’s scope to “state agencies” and “governmental functions other than law enforcement.” 347 N.C. at 481, 495 S.E.2d at 716. The Court’s analysis in reaching that holding demonstrates Stone’s applicability to the issue at bar. See id. (“The policies underlying recognition of the public duty doctrine in Braswell support its application here.”).
Extending the public duty doctrine to claims against the State under the Tort Claims Act was predicated upon three elements. First, the Court considered the legislative intent of the Tort Claims Act to determine whether the public duty doctrine applied to claims brought under the Act against the State. Id. at 478-79, 495 S.E.2d at 714 (“[0]ur primary task is to ensure that the purpose of the legislature, the legislative intent, is accomplished.” (quotation omitted)). Our Supreme Court held “the plain words of the statute indicate an intent that the doctrine apply to claims brought under the Tort Claims Act.” Id. at 479, 495 S.E.2d at 714 (“Acts, such as the Tort Claims Act, that permit suit in derogation of sovereign immunity should be strictly construed.” (citation omitted)). A plaintiff must show the governmental entity owed “a special relationship” or “a special duty” to a particular individual to avoid the public duty doctrine defense. Id. (citing Braswell, 330 N.C. at 371, 410 S.E.2d at 902).
Second, the Court “recognize [d] the limited resources of [the state agency] .... [and] refuse[d] to judicially impose an overwhelming burden of liability on defendants for failure to prevent every employer’s negligence that results in injuries or deaths to employees.” Id. at 481, 495 S.E.2d at 716 (“ ‘[A] government ought to be free to enact laws for the public protection without thereby exposing its supporting taxpayers ... to liability for failures of omission in its attempt to enforce them. It is better to have such laws, even haphazardly enforced, than not to have them at all.’ ” (citation omitted)).
Third, our Supreme Court considered the legislative intent in establishing the Occupational Safety and Health Division of the Department of Labor. Id. at 482, 495 S.E.2d at 716. A review of Chapter 95 of the General Statutes showed “the most the legislature intended was the Division prescribe safety standards and secure some reasonable compliance” by employers. Id. No private individual could initiate a cause of action against the State “to assure compliance.” Id.
*516B. Hunt v. N.C. Dent, of Labor
Our Supreme Court returned to and addressed this issue again in Hunt, 348 N.C. 192, 499 S.E.2d 747. There, the plaintiff alleged a common law negligence action against the State under the Tort Claims Act. Id. at 195, 499 S.E.2d at 749. The Department of Labor “contended] that the public duty doctrine bars this action against the State.” Id. The Court followed the analysis set forth in Stone and reiterated “the public duty doctrine can apply to actions against state agencies brought under the Tort Claims Act.” Id.
Our Supreme Court next considered whether a “distinct duty to any specific individual” existed that would except from the general rule “that a governmental entity acts for the benefit of the general public, not for a specific individual, and, thus, cannot be held liable for a failure to carry out its duties to an individual.” Id. at 196, 499 S.E.2d at 749-50 (citations omitted). The Court cited Braswell in recognizing the two instances that would create the exception to the general rule: (1) “where there is a special relationship between the injured party and the governmental entity;” and (2) “when the governmental entity creates a special duty by promising protection to an individual, the protection is not forthcoming, and the individual’s reliance on the promise of protection is causally related to the injury suffered.” Id. at 197, 499 S.E.2d at 750.
Applying these exceptions to the facts in Hunt, our Supreme Court determined the statutes and administrative rules cited by the plaintiff did “not explicitly prescribe a standard of conduct for this defendant as to individuals]” as required under the first exception to the general rule. Id. at 198, 499 S.E.2d at 751. Further, the plaintiff did not allege “an actual promise” by the State to satisfy the second exception. Id. at 199, 499 S.E.2d at 751. The Court concluded “the claim fails unless it fits into one of the two exceptions.” Id.
C. The Majority
The majority’s opinion contends the public duty doctrine bars only negligence claims involving: (a) failure of law enforcement to provide protection from the misconduct of others; and (b) failure of State departments or agencies to detect and prevent misconduct of others through improper inspections. It cites Braswell, Stone, Hunt, Lovelace, and Thompson as authority in support of this notion.
My analysis of Stone and precedents it relies upon shows our Supreme Court based its application of the public duty doctrine to the *517State agency due to the underlying principles of the doctrine and sovereign immunity, not the status of the State agency to conduct inspections. 347 N.C. at 481, 495 S.E.2d at 716. The Court followed this analysis in Hunt. 348 N.C. at 196, 499 S.E.2d at 749. The Division of Forest Resources is a State agency. Despite the majority’s opinion stating otherwise, Bennett is a State employee. N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-51 through § 113-55 (2003). Lovelace, Thompson, and their progeny were solely limited to claims against local government, do not bear upon, and are inapplicable to the facts at bar. Lovelace, 351 N.C. at 461, 526 S.E.2d at 654; Thompson, 351 N.C. at 465, 526 S.E.2d at 652; Wood v. Guilford County, 355 N.C. 161, 167, 558 S.E.2d 490, 495 (2002) (public duty doctrine barred claim against County agency that provided security to the courthouse).
D. Division of Forest Resources
Applying our Supreme Court’s analysis in Stone and Hunt to the facts here shows: (1) this action against the Division of Forest Resources falls within the scope of the public duty doctrine; and (2) neither exception under Braswell to the general rule precluding State liability applies.
Third-party plaintiffs’ complaint against the Division of Forest Resources alleges it acted negligently with its handling of the forest fire. If third-party plaintiffs are permitted to pursue their claim despite failure to assert a waiver of immunity or the Tort Claims Act, the public duty doctrine bars this claim pursuant to Stone and Hunt.
Third-party plaintiffs do not assert and my review of the General Statutes does not indicate that: (1) a special relationship existed between them and the Division of Forest Resources; or (2) the Division of Forest Resources owes a statutory special and individual duty to each claimant.
N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-51, Powers of Department of Environment and Natural Resources, states “[t]he Department of Environment and Natural Resources may take such action as it may deem necessary to provide for the prevention and control of forest fires in any and all parts of this State . . . .” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-54 provides, “[f]orest rangers shall have charge of measures for controlling forest fires . . . [and] shall post along highways and in other conspicuous places copies of forest fire laws and warnings against fires . . . .” N.C. Gen. Stat. § 113-55(a) begins, “[f]orest rangers shall prevent and extinguish forest fires and shall have control and direction of all persons and *518equipment while engaged in the extinguishing of forest fires.” These statutes, individually or collectively, do not promulgate a special duty to specific individuals or recognize any special relationships. Third-party plaintiffs failed to show the deceased was “promised” any special duty or relationship by the State that he relied upon to his detriment. Braswell, 330 N.C. at 371, 410 S.E.2d at 902. Rather, the Division of Forest Resources’ duty to abide by the statutes is owed to the general public alone and not to any of the claimants here.
III. Conclusion
The Division of Forest Resources properly preserved for appeal its assignment of error by asserting a motion to dismiss and addressing third-party plaintiffs failure to allege a waiver of immunity by the State. The public duty doctrine applies to the facts at bar. Neither exception to the general rule of sovereign immunity and no liability to the State was asserted by third-party plaintiffs and no waiver exists in the record before us.
The trial court erred by not dismissing third-party plaintiffs’ complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. I respectfully dissent.