Craig v. Washington Trust Bank

976 P.2d 126
Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided March 23, 1999·No. 17028-4-III·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

976 P.2d 126 (1999)
94 Wash.App. 820

Jennifer CRAIG, Appellant,
v.
WASHINGTON TRUST BANK, Respondent.

No. 17028-4-III.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 3, Panel Five.

February 4, 1999.
Publication Ordered March 23, 1999.

*127 Charles T. Conrad, Spokane, Charles E. Rohr Jr., Spokane, for Appellant.

Michael A. Maurer, Michael A. Roozekrans, Spokane, for Respondent.

Sherrie Wright, Spokane, Pro Se.

BROWN, J.

Jennifer Craig, a janitor working for an independent contractor, sued Washington Trust Bank (Bank) for negligence arising from a third person criminal assault occurring one night as she left the Bank to empty trash. The trial court granted summary judgment against her. Generally, no duty exists to protect others from the criminal acts of third persons. However, some special relationships may give rise to exceptions to this general rule. We agree with the trial court that a special relation did not exist in Ms. Craig's case and affirm.

FACTS

Ms. Craig, a janitor employee of American Building Maintenance Company (ABM), worked nights at a downtown Spokane Bank branch. ABM's contract with the Bank for janitorial services specified "[ABM] is an independent contractor and all persons employed to furnish services hereunder are employees of [ABM] and not [Bank]...."

Ms. Craig reported feeling afraid to take out the garbage some nights because transients were loitering around the main garbage receptacle. Generally, the Bank encouraged all employees in its branches to be safety conscious and recommended walking in pairs to their cars and carrying mace. No Bank employee ever reported an attack outside Ms. Craig's workplace.

Ms. Craig would occasionally refuse to take the Bank's trash out because she was afraid. ABM reprimanded her for refusing to dump the trash after receiving complaints from the Bank. One night subsequent to the earlier complaints to ABM, Ms. Craig injured her leg when she tripped running away from two persons she encountered as she was taking out the Bank trash.

Ms. Craig sued the Bank for negligence for her personal injuries. The court granted the Bank summary judgment and dismissed her suit because she failed to show the Bank breached any duty to her. Ms. Craig filed this appeal.

ANALYSIS

A. Contentions. Ms. Craig contends the trial court erred in four ways. (1) Ms. Craig was an employee thereby requiring an elevated *128 duty of care. (2)The Bank had notice of potential criminal conduct. (3) The Bank affirmatively brought about the opportunity for criminal misconduct. (4) Ms. Craig was a business invitee thereby requiring an elevated duty of care.

B. Standard of Review. The standards of review for a grant of summary judgment are summarized in Schaaf v. Highfield, 127 Wash.2d 17, 21, 896 P.2d 665 (1995) and Chen v. State, 86 Wash.App. 183, 187, 937 P.2d 612, review denied, 133 Wash.2d 1020, 948 P.2d 387 (1997). CR 56(c) provides for summary judgment only if the pleadings, affidavits, depositions, and admissions on file demonstrate the absence of any genuine issues of material fact, and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. To defeat summary judgment in a negligence case, the plaintiff must show an issue of material fact as to each element—duty, breach of duty, causation, and damages. Kennedy v. Sea-Land Serv., Inc., 62 Wash. App. 839, 856, 816 P.2d 75 (1991). All facts and reasonable inferences are considered most favorably to the nonmoving party. Schaaf, 127 Wash.2d at 21, 896 P.2d 665. The nonmoving party may not rely on speculation or argumentative assertions. Pelton v. Tri-State Memorial Hosp., 66 Wash.App. 350, 355, 831 P.2d 1147 (1992); Kirk v. Moe, 114 Wash.2d 550, 557, 789 P.2d 84 (1990). When reasonable minds could reach but one conclusion regarding claims of disputed facts, such questions may be determined as a matter of law. Ruffer v. St. Frances Cabrini Hosp., 56 Wash.App. 625, 628, 784 P.2d 1288, review denied, 114 Wash.2d 1023, 792 P.2d 535 (1990).

C. Employee or Independent Contractor. Ms. Craig first contends the trial court incorrectly concluded she was not an employee of the Bank and thus subject to certain workplace regulations. However, the language of the contract between the Bank and ABM indicates she is an employee of ABM, not the Bank. No material facts indicate otherwise, thus, the trial court was in a position to rule as a matter of law on the related legal issues. First we examine what, if any, duty the Bank owed Ms. Craig as an employee of an independent contractor.

Generally, the Bank as an owner is not liable for injuries sustained by employees of its independent contractor, ABM. Smith v. Myers, 90 Wash.App. 89, 95, 950 P.2d 1018 (1998). Nevertheless, Ms. Craig contends a duty arose under the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA), which sets forth two duties for an "employer." The first is a general duty imposed on an employer to protect its direct employees from hazards that are likely to cause death or serious bodily injury. RCW 49.17.060(1). The second is a specific duty imposed on employers for the benefit of all workers on a job site, not just the employer's direct employees. RCW 49.17.060(2). The specific duty, which Ms. Craig relies on here, requires the employer to "comply with the rules, regulations, and orders promulgated under this chapter." Id. Since all employers are charged with the duty to comply with the WISHA regulations, the threshold question is whether the Bank is an "employer" within the meaning of RCW 49.17.060(2). Stute v. P.B.M.C., Inc., 114 Wash.2d 454, 462-63, 788 P.2d 545 (1990).

If more than one entity may qualify as an "employer" at a job site, the primary duty to comply with the regulations falls on the employer with "innate supervisory authority... over the workplace." Id. at 462-64, 788 P.2d 545. The Bank employed ABM and ABM employed Ms. Craig. While the Bank was free to complain to ABM about its service, ABM had supervisory authority over its employees. Ms. Craig argues the Bank should have instilled a two-person policy for female janitors cleaning at night. However, it is ABM's responsibility to initiate such policy for its employees, not the Bank's.

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Craig v. Washington Trust Bank, 976 P.2d 126 (Wash. Ct. App. 1999).

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