Cottrill v. Russell

625 N.E.2d 888, 253 Ill. App. 3d 934, 192 Ill. Dec. 733, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 1814
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedDecember 9, 1993
Docket4-93-0313
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 625 N.E.2d 888 (Cottrill v. Russell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cottrill v. Russell, 625 N.E.2d 888, 253 Ill. App. 3d 934, 192 Ill. Dec. 733, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 1814 (Ill. Ct. App. 1993).

Opinion

JUSTICE KNECHT

delivered the opinion of the court:

On January 9, 1992, plaintiff, Kimberly Kay Cottrill, f/k/a Kimberly Kay Gill, filed a negligence action against defendant Dr. Robert Russell. Defendant moved to dismiss the complaint for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, arguing section 8a(3) of the Southern Illinois University Management Act (Act) (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 144, par. 658a(3)) required all claims brought against a physician employed by Southern Illinois University School of Medicine (SIU School of Medicine) to be brought in the Court of Claims. The circuit court denied the motion to dismiss, but certified, for purposes of a permissive interlocutory appeal under Supreme Court Rule 308 (134 Ill. 2d R. 308), the question of whether the Court of Claims had exclusive jurisdiction over the matter. We answer the question no, and affirm.

I. Background

This case involves the interpretation and application of sections 8a(2) and (3) of the Act, which provide:

“(2) The Board [of Trustees of Southern Illinois University] shall have power to insure the Board, the universities under Board jurisdiction, Board members, paid and unpaid employees of the Board, and any students, volunteer workers, visiting faculty and professionals who are agents of the Board in the performance or delivery of its programs or services against claims, damages, losses, expenses and civil suits arising out of state- • ments, acts or omissions in the discharge of their duties, which statements, acts or omissions do not involve intentional or willful and wanton misconduct on the part of such persons; and to insure against losses to real and personal property owned by the Board or in the actual or constructive custody of the Board and for loss of income from such real and personal property. The Board shall have power to defend, hold harmless and indemnify, in whole or in part, all persons as to whom any such insurance is provided. ***
* * *
(3) As to all claims, damages, losses, expenses and civil suits covered by insurance provided by the Board or as to which the Board has not provided insurance, to the extent permitted by law, sovereign immunity shall apply and recourse shall be limited to the Court of Claims.” (Emphasis added.) Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 144, pars. 658a(2), (3).

On January 9, 1992, plaintiff filed a two-count complaint against defendant, seeking damages for injuries she allegedly sustained due to defendant’s negligent medical treatment of her. SpecificaUy, the complaint charged defendant acted negligently in the course of performing nose surgery on plaintiff and in his follow-up care.

In response, defendant filed a motion to dismiss for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, pursuant to section 2 — 619 of the Code of Civil Procedure (Code) (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 110, par. 2 — 619). He alleged he was an employee of SIU School of Medicine, and any services rendered by him in regard to plaintiff were made as an employee of SIU School of Medicine. He further alleged under section 8a(2) of the Act the Board has established a self-insurance program and the program covered the alleged negligent acts. Defendant, therefore, contended under section 8a(3) the circuit court was without subject-matter jurisdiction to hear the complaint because recourse could only be had in the Court of Claims.

Attached to the motion was an affidavit by Joseph M. Yusko, director of risk management for the self-insurance program for the SIU system. As director of risk management, he asserted he had the authority to make the determination of coverage with respect to a named insured under the insurance program. Having reviewed plaintiff’s complaint, he stated defendant was covered by the insurance program for those acts charged in plaintiff’s complaint.

Plaintiff answered defendant’s motion to dismiss by asserting there was no evidence in the record to suggest the services rendered by defendant in examining, diagnosing, and treating her were made by him as an employee of SIU School of Medicine. Rather, she asserted the evidence at trial would establish defendant was paid directly for his services as a private physician and therefore could be sued in circuit court.

In January 1993, the court denied defendant’s motion to dismiss, but later certified the following question for appeal:

“Whether, by enacting Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 144, par. 658a(3): The General Assembly intended that, for all claims, damages, losses, expenses and civil suits against physicians employed by Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, and covered by a self-insurance program provided by the Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois University, as authorized by Ill. Rev. Stat. 1991, ch. 144, par. 658a(2), (3), sovereign immunity shall apply and recourse shall be limited to the court of claims.”

II. Motion To Strike

We first consider defendant’s motion to strike certain portions of plaintiff’s brief. First, defendant moves to strike pages 10 through 13 of plaintiff’s statement of facts as in violation of Supreme Court Rule 341(e)(6) (134 Ill. 2d R. 341(e)(6))., He argues this portion of plaintiff’s brief is replete with argument and citation to case law and should be stricken as it is conclusory, argumentative and not grounded on objective facts. No response was filed to this motion, and it was taken with the case.

Supreme Court Rule 341(e)(6) provides in part the statement of facts section of an appellate brief “shall contain the facts necessary to an understanding of the case, stated accurately and fairly without argument or comment, and with appropriate reference to the pages of the record on appeal.” 134 Ill. 2d R. 341(e)(6).

Defendant is correct pages 10 through 13 of plaintiff’s statement of facts contain argumentative language and several citations to case law, which is inappropriate for a statement of facts and against the mandates of Rule 341(e)(6). Plaintiff’s statement of facts nevertheless complies with Rule 341(e)(6) in other respects by making reference to the record and by setting forth other fairly innocuous representations of fact. (Knight v. Haydary (1992), 223 Ill. App. 3d 564, 579-80, 585 N.E.2d 243, 254.) Where violations of supreme court rules are not so flagrant as to hinder or preclude review, the striking of a brief in whole or in part may be unwarranted. Knight, 223 Ill. App. 3d at 580, 585 N.E.2d at 254; James v. Yasunaga (1987), 157 Ill. App. 3d 450, 452, 510 N.E.2d 531, 533.

The errant remarks in question do not render the statements so misleading as to interfere with this court’s review of the case, especially since these remarks were taken virtually verbatim from plaintiff’s answer to defendant’s motion to dismiss, which was included in the record on appeal. Under the circumstances, pages 10 through 13 of plaintiff’s statement of facts need not be stricken (City of Highwood v. Obenberger (1992), 238 Ill. App. 3d 1066, 1073, 605 N.E.2d 1079

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
625 N.E.2d 888, 253 Ill. App. 3d 934, 192 Ill. Dec. 733, 1993 Ill. App. LEXIS 1814, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cottrill-v-russell-illappct-1993.