Compass v. Department of Highways

224 So. 2d 102, 1969 La. App. LEXIS 6032
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 2, 1969
DocketNo. 3553
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 224 So. 2d 102 (Compass v. Department of Highways) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Compass v. Department of Highways, 224 So. 2d 102, 1969 La. App. LEXIS 6032 (La. Ct. App. 1969).

Opinion

BARNETTE, Judge.

The plaintiff, Antonia Compass, divorced wife of Alphonse Picou, has appealed from a judgment sustaining an exception of no cause or no right of action based on governmental immunity and dismissing her suit insofar as the defendant Department of Highways of the State of Louisiana is concerned. Her suit for damages insofar as the other defendants are concerned is pending trial in the district court.

The plaintiff owns certain property on North Claiborne Avenue in the City of New Orleans along which street the Department of Highways engaged Boh Brothers Construction Company, Inc., to construct a section of the Federal Highway System known as Interstate-10. The construction called for the driving of a large number of piles. The plaintiff alleged that the vibrations caused by the pile driving in the immediate vicinity of her property caused extensive damage for which she seeks recovery against the Department of Highways, Boh Brothers, and Travelers Insurance Company, the latter’s liability insurer. In addition to the $10',174.40 alleged damage to her property, she seeks recovery of $53,250 for alleged pain, suffering, mental anguish, nervous system shock, and medical expenses incident thereto.

The Department of Highways filed an exception of no cause or no right of action based on a claim of governmental immunity. This exception was maintained by the trial judge without written reasons and plaintiff’s suit against that defendant was dismissed.

The facts and issues presented by this appeal are identical in every material aspect, except for the additional claim of damages for personal injuries, to those presented and decided by us in Klein v. Department of Highways, La.App., 175 So.2d 454 (writs refused by the Supreme Court, 248 La. 369, 178 So.2d 658 [1965]). Furthermore, in the more recent case of Bazanac v. State, Department of Highways, La.App., 218 So.2d 121, decided by us January 6, 1969, the issue of governmental immunity of the State Department of Highways was again before this court. In that case, we reaffirmed our opinion in the Klein case and again upheld the Department’s immunity, which had not been waived, and maintained its exception of no right of action.

In deciding the Bazanac case we stated our awareness of the conflict of our opinion with the majority opinion of the First Circuit in Lambert v. Austin Bridge Company, La.App., 189 So.2d 752 (1966) 1 and our concurrence with the dissenting opinion of Reid, J. We also took cognizance of the opinion of our brothers of the Third Circuit in Herrin v. Perry, 215 So.2d 177 (1968). In both of those cases as in Reymond v. State, Through Department of Highways, La.App., 217 So.2d 488, decided December 16, 1968, the courts followed the decision of the Supreme Court in Hamilton v. City of Shreveport, 247 La. 784, 174 So.2d 529 (1965),2 which was interpreted as having the effect of overruling the earlier opinion of the Supreme Court in Westwego Canal and Terminal Co., Inc. v. Louisiana Highway Commission, 200 La. 990, 9 So.2d 389 (1942). We did not agree with that interpretation, nor do we now agree that Hamilton has effectively overruled West-wego.

The rationale of the Hamilton case is that the Charter of the City of Shreveport authorizing the City to sue and to be sued was an effective waiver of its immunity and hence, under the provisions of LSA-Const. Art. 3, § 35 as amended in 1960, was an authorization by the Legislature for suit against the City of Shreveport for all pur[105]*105poses. Our brothers of the First and Third Circuits have pointed to a similar provision in LSA-R.S. 48:22 (Act 4 of 1942) empowering the Department of Highways to “sue and be sued, implead and be impleaded” which they conclude under the authority of Hamilton constitutes an effective waiver of immunity by the Department of Highways which had been rejected in West-wego.

The pertinent part of LSA-Const. Art. 3, § 35 as amended in 1960 is as follows:

“The Legislature is empowered to waive, by special or general laws or resolutions, the immunity from suit and from liability of the state, and of parishes, municipalities, political subdivisions, public boards, institutions, departments, commissions, districts, corporations, agencies and authorities and other public or governmental bodies; and each authorization by the Legislature for suit against the State or other such public body, heretofore and hereafter enacted or granted, shall be construed to be and shall be effective and valid for all purposes, as of and from the date thereof, as a waiver of the defendant’s immunity both from suit and from liability. * * ”

It is significant, we think, that in West-wego the Supreme Court said:

“It has been held, and now appears to be well settled, that the provision in Act 95 of 1921, Ex.Sess., whereby the Highway Commission is declared to be a body corporate and that as such it may sue or be sued, does not authorize suits against the Commission for the recovery of damages ex delicto. Kilberg v. Louisiana Highway Commission, 8 La.App. 441; Orgeron et ux. v. Louisiana Power & Light Co. et al., 19 La.App. 628, 140 So. 282, in which writs of certiorari and review were refused by this Court.” 9 So.2d at 390.

LSA-R.S. 48:22 (Act 4 of 1942, Section 8), which is a rewriting of Section 3 of Act 95 of 1921, above referred to by the Supreme Court, makes no change in the language pertinent to our consideration here. Clearly the Supreme Court in Westwego rejected this as a waiver of immunity against suits ex delicto. No other legislative authorization has been called to our attention which enlarges on this act. It logically follows, therefore, if there was no waiver of immunity prior to 1960 and none has been granted since 1960, the language of the 1960 amendment in reference to authorization by the Legislature “heretofore and hereafter enacted or granted * * * ” does not affect the Department of Highways.

It is argued that the 1960 amendment to Article 3, Section 35 wherein it provides that the legislative authorization heretofore and hereafter enacted, etc., shall be effective “for all purposes” has the effect of extending the heretofore limited authorization for suit against the Department of Highways to cover also actions ex delicto and actions under LSA-C.C. art. 667. This argument seems to be answered by the Supreme Court in Hamilton wherein it said:

“It is apt to observe that the Legislature of 1960 in adopting the aforementioned proposed amendment did so with the express purpose of nullifying the effect of two decisions of this court, Duree v. Maryland Casualty Co., 238 La. 166, 114 So.2d 594, (rehearing denied October 9, 1959), and Stephens v. Natchitoches School Board, 238 La. 388, 115 So.2d 793, (rehearing denied December 14, 1959), holding thát whenever the Legislature authorized suit under Section 35 of Article 3 of the Constitution of 1921, as amended pursuant to Act No. 385 of 1946, it simply waived the traditional immunity of the state and its subdivisions from suit and did not constitute a waiver of the state or its agencies from liability for the negligence of one of its employees in the exercise of a governmental function.” 174 So.2d at 530.

[106]*106Duree v. Maryland Casualty Company, supra, was a suit against the State (in which, incidentally, the Court cited with reapproval its decision in Westwego, 114 So.2d at p. 596), and Stephens v.

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Related

Compass v. Department of Highways
227 So. 2d 144 (Supreme Court of Louisiana, 1969)

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Bluebook (online)
224 So. 2d 102, 1969 La. App. LEXIS 6032, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/compass-v-department-of-highways-lactapp-1969.