Court Opinion

ID: 9773685
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-29 17:54:12.446271+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:31:56.177865
License: Public Domain

ON MOTION FOR REHEARING
On rehearing Texas Steel finds fault with our failure to discuss its points of error insisting that the overhead traveling crane and its cab was so open and obvious to Recer and patently constituted a dangerous condition to him, as a person in the path of the cab and crane, that it owed no duty to warn Recer and owed no duty with respect to the other instances of negligence found. Texas Steel contends that the court should have disregarded the findings upon such issues, all of which were submitted to the jury over its objection.
In the opinion we noted that the jury, in connection with Texas Steel’s issues under its pleaded defense of volenti non fit inju-ria, refused to find that Recer voluntarily assumed risk of injury in getting into and remaining in the position of danger where he sustained his injuries as result of being struck by the cab of the crane. The issues bore upon the pleaded defense mentioned and not directly upon the concept of “no duty”, as to which Recer was required to carry the burden of proof.
Adam Dante Corporation v. Sharpe, 483 S.W.2d 452, 458, (Tex.Sup., 1972) is the latest of the cases by the Supreme Court upon the theories of “no duty” and rrvolen-*901ti” in suits for damages by a plaintiff “invitee” (as Recer) against the owner/operator of premises where plaintiff was allegedly injured. Justice Pope, author of the opinion, goes so far as to indicate his thoughts relative to the proper submission of special issues in such a case. The case discussed was one where “no duty” and “volenti” went “hand in hand”. The same is true in the case presently before us. Here the trial court “tracked” the special issue submission indicated by Adam Dante. The trial court, deeming both theories to have been raised by pleadings and finding (as was within the province of the court) that they were raised by the evidence, submitted the special issues indicated by Justice Pope.
On “no duty”: By Adam Dante Recer was not required to obtain a jury finding that he did not actually know and did not appreciate the danger, but he was merely required to present evidence making a prima facie case to that effect. By his proof of a prima facie case on “no duty” a character of obligation was cast upon Texas Steel to “go forward with the evidence” upon its affirmative defense of "volenti”. On such affirmative defense Texas Steel was required to seek (under its evidence) the submission of special issue inquiry to the jury (with the burden thereof cast upon it) inquiring whether Recer had voluntarily assumed the risk of injury. This was the manner by which the case was submitted to the jury and no attack is made upon the mode of framing the court’s charge on these theories.
Thus, primarily, the contention of Texas Steel is that there was no evidence whereby Recer might be said to have discharged his burden of proof upon “no duty”. Secondarily, its contention is that the trial court’s necessarily implied finding that such burden was discharged was contrary to the greater weight and preponderance of the evidence by the whole record.
On this we hold that there was sufficient evidence of probative force by which the trial court correctly treated Re-cer’s duty as discharged; and that the necessarily implied finding by the court that the burden was discharged was not against the greater weight and preponderance of the evidence. We again note that we have held that the jury’s negative finding, or refusal to find, that Recer voluntarily assumed risk of injury — Texas Steel’s defensive issue — was not contrary to the greater weight and preponderance of the evidence.
The motion for rehearing is overruled.