Briar v. Elder-Beerman Department Store, Inc.

645 N.E.2d 8, 1994 Ind. App. LEXIS 1800, 1994 WL 712693
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedDecember 27, 1994
Docket89A01-9403-CV-97
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 645 N.E.2d 8 (Briar v. Elder-Beerman Department Store, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Briar v. Elder-Beerman Department Store, Inc., 645 N.E.2d 8, 1994 Ind. App. LEXIS 1800, 1994 WL 712693 (Ind. Ct. App. 1994).

Opinions

OPINION

BAKER, Judge.

In this appeal, we examine what is necessary to survive summary judgment in a res ipsa loquitur case. Appellant-plaintiffs Debbie and Douglas Briar, on behalf of their minor child (the Briars), challenge the trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of appellee-defendant Elder-Beerman Department Store, Inc. (Elder-Beerman), in the Briars’ personal injury action.

FACTS

On December 1, 1990, the Briars were shopping with their minor daughter, Amy, in the Elder-Beerman Department Store in Richmond, Indiana. The Briars allege that while in the store, Amy touched a Plasma FX Lamp display and suffered an electric shock. The Briars filed suit against Elder-Beerman to recover damages for medical [10]*10expenses incurred as a result of the shock.1 In their amended complaint, the Briars advanced three theories for recovery: res ipsa loquitur, negligence, and strict liability. To support their claims, the Briars hired an expert to examine the lamp. However, the expert’s report indicated that there was no causal link between the operation of the lamp and Amy’s injury. Record at 70-71.

Thereafter, pursuant to Ind.Trial Rule 36, Elder-Beerman served a request for admissions on the Briars asking them to “[a]dmit or deny that [the Briars] cannot identify the instrumentality which [they] claim to have caused [Amy’s] injuries.” R. at 93-94. The Briars answered: “ADMIT. This 'is a res ipsa loquitur case.” R. at 94. In response to the Briars’ admission, Elder-Beerman filed a motion for summary judgment alleging that the Briars could not demonstrate the necessary elements to invoke the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur. In support of its motion Elder-Beerman relied on the Briars’ admission that they did not know the cause of the injury and the expert’s report opining that the lamp could not have caused the shock.

The Briars filed a memorandum in opposition to Elder-Beerman’s motion for summary judgment arguing that they had satisfied the elements of res ipsa loquitur. They did not contest summary judgment on the negligence and strict liability claims. In support of their res ipsa loquitur claim, the Briars relied on two of Elder-Beerman’s answers to interrogatories. These answers are as follows:

Are electrical shocks and injuries common at [Elder-Beerman]?
ANSWER: [Elder-Beerman] objects to this interrogatory in that it is over broad, vague, and not reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence. Notwithstanding this objection, electrical shocks are not “common” at the Elder-Beerman store in question.
Was the product, shelves or building under the control of [Elder-Beerman] or its agents or employees during the time in question?
ANSWER: Yes.

R. at 122.

After a hearing, the trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Elder-Beer-man finding that the Briars’ admission that they could not identify the instrumentality that caused Amy’s injuries was fatal to their res ipsa loquitur cause of action. The court stated:

The Court has carefully read and considered all pleadings properly before it. The Court has been further informed by [the Briars] that their sole theory of relief is based upon a proposed application of the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur.
Being duly advised, the Court finds that as a result of [the Briars’] response to [Elder-Beerman’s] Trial Rule 36 request for admission, it has been conclusively established for purposes of trial that “[the Briars] cannot identify the instrumentality which [they] claim to have caused [Amy’s] injuries.” The Court therefore finds that there is no genuine issue of material fact regarding this required element of the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur and that [the Briars are] unable to prevail upon this theory and that [Elder-Beerman] is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law.
It is understood by all parties and the Court that [the Briars’] case will rise or fall upon their ability to invoke the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur. It would appeal* self evident that as a pre-requisite to establishing exclusive control [the Briars] must, of necessity, establish and identify the actual instrumentality which caused the injury.

R. at 149-51.

DISCUSSION AND DECISION

The Briars contend that the trial court erred in granting summary judgment because they satisfied the requirements for applying the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur. A trial court’s grant of summary judgment arrives on appeal clothed with presumptive validity. Rosi v. Business Furniture Corp. [11]*11(1993), Ind., 615 N.E.2d 431, 434. A court on appeal stands in the same position as the trial court when reviewing a summary judgment motion. Wolf Corp. v. Thompson (1993), Ind.App., 609 N.E.2d 1170, 1172. Summary judgment shall be granted if the designated evidence shows that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Ind.Trial Rule 56(C). When reviewing the motion, the court considers all designated pleadings, affidavits, depositions, and answers to interrogatories, drawing all reasonable inferences therefrom in favor of the non-moving party. Rosi, 615 N.E.2d at 434. Where there is no evidence on one element of a claim, summary judgment is proper. Chester v. Indianapolis Newspapers (1990), Ind.App., 553 N.E.2d 137, 141, trans. denied.

The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur is a rule of evidence whereby an inference of negligence can be drawn under certain factual circumstances. Brinegar v. Robertson Corp. (1990), Ind.App., 550 N.E.2d 812, 814, trans. denied. The central question involved in the use of the res ipsa loquitur doctrine is whether the incident more probably resulted from the defendant’s negligence rather than some other cause. K-Mart Corp. v. Gipson (1990), Ind.App., 563 N.E.2d 667, 669, trans. denied. The doctrine may be applied when the plaintiff establishes: 1) that the injuring instrumentality was within the exclusive management and control of the defendant or its servants; and, 2) the accident is of the type that does not ordinarily happen if those who have the management and control exercise proper care.2 Id.

The Briars argue that they satisfied these elements and, thus, summary judgment should not have been granted in favor of Elder-Beerman. The Briars rely on Elder-Beerman’s answers to interrogatories in which the store admitted that the lamp, shelves, and building were under the exclusive control of Elder-Beerman, and that electrical shocks do not normally occur in Elder-Beerman’s store in the absence of negligence.

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Briar v. Elder-Beerman Department Store, Inc.
645 N.E.2d 8 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1994)

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Bluebook (online)
645 N.E.2d 8, 1994 Ind. App. LEXIS 1800, 1994 WL 712693, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/briar-v-elder-beerman-department-store-inc-indctapp-1994.