Court Opinion

ID: 9519201
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 01:11:16.885191+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:44:05.913422
License: Public Domain

MR. JUSTICE DOOLEY, specially concurring: I agree with the judgment of the court and the persuasive opinion of Mr. Justice Goldenhersh. In my opinion, it would facilitate the work of the nisi prius and appellate courts in this State if we overruled McGovern v. Standish (1976), 65 Ill. 2d 54, a nomine. It is contrary to the language of the Structural Work Act (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1971, ch. 48, pars. 60—69), as well as a large body of decisions of this court on the issue as to what constitutes “in charge of.” See McInerney v. Hasbrook Construction Co. (1975), 62 Ill. 2d 93, 99-102; Voss v. Kingdon & Naven, Inc. (1975), 60 Ill. 2d 520, 525-27; McNellis v. Combustion Engineering, Inc. (1974), 58 Ill. 2d 146, 151-52; Buehler v. Toynan Construction Co. (1972), 52 Ill. 2d 214, 216-17; Huckabee v. Bell & Howell, Inc. (1970), 47 Ill. 2d 153, 157-58; Miller v. DeWitt (1967), 37 Ill. 2d 273, 286; Kobus v. Formfit Co. (1966), 35 Ill. 2d 533, 537-38; Larson v. Commonwealth Edison Co. (1965), 33 Ill. 2d 316, 321-23; Gannon v. Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Ry. Co. (1961), 22 Ill. 2d 305, 323-24. It is also inconsistent with the proposition that more than one person may have charge of the work. Miller v. DeWitt (1967), 37 Ill. 2d 273, 291; Li Petri v. Turner Construction Co. (1967), 36 Ill. 2d 597; Larson v. Commonwealth Edison Co. (1965), 33 Ill. 2d 316. See my specially concurring opinion in Crothers v. La Salle Institute (1977), 68 Ill. 2d 399, 413, for a discussion of McGovern. McGovern has already caused multiple problems for appellate courts. Here (Emberton v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. (1976), 44 Ill. App. 3d 839) the appellate court reversed a judgment by a divided vote on the basis of McGovern. In Meek v. Spinney, Coady & Parker Architects, Inc. (1977), 50 Ill. App. 3d 919, the dismissal of a complaint was affirmed as to one defendant on this particular issue, and in Powers v. National Mirror Works (1977), 52 Ill. App. 3d 592, a summary judgment was affirmed on this issue, with McGovern the key case. Unless specifically overruled, the courts and the litigants will not know the status of this decision and will continue to be misled by it. In the final analysis, it is the litigant who pays the reckoning.