Brooks v. Wage

414 S.W.2d 100, 242 Ark. 486, 1967 Ark. LEXIS 1273
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedMay 1, 1967
Docket5-4179
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 414 S.W.2d 100 (Brooks v. Wage) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brooks v. Wage, 414 S.W.2d 100, 242 Ark. 486, 1967 Ark. LEXIS 1273 (Ark. 1967).

Opinion

J. Fred Jones, Justice.

This is a workmen’s compensation case involving' the question of whether or not the injury and resulting death of an employee grew out of and occurred within the scope of his employment. The Workmen’s Compensation Commission held that it did. The Circuit Court on appeal reversed the Commission and we agree with the Circuit Court.

The claim was filed by Ruthie Mae Brooks, the widow of a deceased employee, Fred W. Brooks. The Commission rendered a thorough and comprehensive opinion in this case, but we do not agree with the legal conclusion reached by the Commission on the facts of this case. We conclude that there was no substantial competent evidence to support the findings and award of the Commission.

At the time of his injury and death, Fred W. Brooks had been employed for a number of years by Robert E. Wage in the general contracting business. He had worked on jobs all over Little Rock, including two or three jobs in the Broadmoor Addition. The decedent drove to and from work in his own pickup truck. He worked by the hour and his regular work day started at 8:00 a.m. and stopped at 4:30 p.m. The decedent lived in the Tie Plant area on the east side of North Little Rock, and for two days prior to February 15, 1965, he worked on his job in the Brookwood Addition to Little Rock, located off the new Benton Highway near the city limits in the extreme southwest section of Little Rock.

Early on Monday morning, February 15, the respondent employer called decedent at home by telephone and requested Mm to stop by Long-Bell Lumber Company, 4501 Asher Avenue,, and pick up some reinforcing rods and bring them on out to the job. On tMs point the employer testified as follows:

“Q. What were your instructions to him at that time?
A. I told him to come by Long-Bell Lumber Company and pick up some reinforcing rods and to go to No. 8 Rosewood, which is in the Brookwood Addition out behind Meadowcliff.”

and at page ten of the transcript. Mr. Wage testified as follows:

“Q. Mr. Wage, what hours did Mr. Brooks normally work?
A. From eight to four-thirty.
Q Now, would you have had any reason to expect him to reach Long-Bell Lumber Company prior to eight o’clock?
A. No.
Q. Would you have wanted him to be on the job out there in — was it Brookfield?
A. Um-hum (nods affirmatively). No. Brook-wood.
Q. By eight o ’clock, or would it have been satisfactory to you if he had reached Long-Bell by eight o’clock?
A. No, his work time started at eight o’clock and I had no call on Mm before eight o’clock or after four-thirty.
Q. I see.
A. Unless we agreed to it.”

On the morning of February 15, the decedent left home about 7:00 a.m.; picked up twó óf his neighbor women who worked in Little Rock, drove south across the bridge from North Little Rock to Little Rock, then drove west out No. 10 Highway through the extreme north and northwest side of Little Rock, turned south onto Monroe Street from Highway 10 and delivered the neighbor women to the place of their employment at 1701 North Monroe Street. He then drove north on'Monroe Street toward No. 10 Highway.

Decedent was killed in a collision at the- intersection of Broadmoor and Berkshire Drives in the Broádmoor Addition lying west of University Avenue in the extreme west or southwest section of Little Rock, and several blocks northwest of Long-Bell Lumber Company, and several more blocks north of No. 8 Rosewood in the Brookwóod Addition. The collision occurred about 7:30 or 7:35 a.m. while the deceased was. driving in a northwesterly direction on Broadmoor Drive. He was. traveling in a course that would have led him into Boyle Park or the. intersection with west 12th Street. He had already crossed 12th Street in coining from North Monroe and was traveling in the opposite direction from Long-Beli Lumber Company, where he was not expected to be for another twenty-five or thirty minutes, when the collision' occurred

There seems to be no question but that an employee is not within the course of his employmeiit under the Arkansas Workmen’s Compensation Act while traveliiig to or from his job before or after regular work hours unless he falls within one of several generally recognized exceptions to the “going and coming” rule.

This court has recognized various exceptions to the going and coming rule, such as where an emplpyee has reached a place so close to the employer’s premises as to be considered on a part of the employer’s premises.

Bales v. Service Club, 208 Ark. 692, 187 S. W. 2d 321 ; where the employer furnishes transportation to and from the place of employment. Hunter v. Summerville, 205 Ark. 463, 169 S. W. 2d 579, in the case of traveling salesmen, where traveling is an integral part of the employment. Frank Lyon Co. v. Oates, 225 Ark. 682, 284 S. W. 2d 637, also where the employer agrees to furnish transportation, Hunter v. Summerville, 205 Ark. 463, 169 S. W. 2d. 579.

Another exception, and the one argued in this case, is where the employee is on a special mission for the employer before or after regular working hours. Arkansas, as well as most states, recognizes, this exception, but the gray area in this exception is broadened when the employee deviates from his route in performing the special service for his employer in order to perform special service for himself or for a third party.

To cite and attempt to distinguish the cases in this area of exception to the “going and coming” rule, would enlarge this opinion to text book chapter proportions, and there are already text book chapters on the subject; 8 Schneider, Workmen’s Compensation, chapter 33, § 1733, and volume 7, § 1680 ; 1 Larson’s Law on Workmen’s. Compensation, § 19.50.

The New York case of Mack’s Dependent v. Gray, 167 N. E. 181 (N. Y. 1929) cited by appellant contains facts somewhat different from the facts in the case at bar. It primarily involved the “dual purpose doctrine,” but the opinion in that case by Chief Justice Cardozo presents sound reasoning on the “going and coming” rule and its exceptions, as well as the “dual purpose” doctrine, and has been followed by this court.

The deceased employee, Marts, made his home and place of business in Clifton Springs, New' York. On the day in question, his wife was visiting in Shortsville, where Marks was to pick his wife up at the end of the day. The employer, learning of the planned trip, asked Marks to take his tools and fix some faucets in a house in Shortsville. The job was of a small nature. There would have been no need for a special trip as no profit could have been derived. Marks did not use company transportation, hut used his. own automobile. He would be paid the normal wage, however.

Marks was killed enroute to Shortsville.

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Bluebook (online)
414 S.W.2d 100, 242 Ark. 486, 1967 Ark. LEXIS 1273, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brooks-v-wage-ark-1967.