Doty-Fielding v. Town of South Prairie

178 P.3d 1054, 143 Wash. App. 559
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedMarch 12, 2008
Docket35829-8-II
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 178 P.3d 1054 (Doty-Fielding v. Town of South Prairie) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Doty-Fielding v. Town of South Prairie, 178 P.3d 1054, 143 Wash. App. 559 (Wash. Ct. App. 2008).

Opinion

178 P.3d 1054 (2008)

Jill DOTY-FIELDING, a married woman on behalf of her separate estate, Appellant,
v.
TOWN OF SOUTH PRAIRIE, Respondent.

No. 35829-8-II.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 2.

March 12, 2008.

*1055 John W. Schedler, Lee Smart PS Inc., Seattle, WA, for Appellant.

Michael B. Tierney, Diana Virginia Blakney, Michael B. Tierney PC, Mercer Island, WA, for Respondent.

QUINN-BRINTNALL, J.

¶ 1 Jill Doty-Fielding appeals the trial court's order granting the Town of South Prairie's (Town) motion for summary judgment on all claims. Doty-Fielding sued the Town for injuries she sustained while fire fighting on December 25, 1999, claiming that the Town breached its duty to provide her with a safe working environment by failing to train her properly. Because the record does not contain evidence supporting every element of Doty-Fielding's negligence claim, we affirm.

FACTS

¶ 2 Doty-Fielding, a volunteer fire fighter for the Town, was injured fighting a fire on December 25, 1999. Unable to close the bale of an over-pressurized fire hose, Doty-Fielding "slammed" the bale with her open hand as if spiking a volley ball and injured her right hand, wrist, and arm. Clerk's Papers (CP) at 33. Doty-Fielding applied for and initially received compensation under the volunteer fire fighters' and reserve officers' relief and pensions statute.[1]

First Case

¶ 3 Doty-Fielding also sued the Town, seeking damages for her injuries. The Town argued that the Industrial Insurance Act[2] (IIA) provided Doty-Fielding an exclusive remedy. Agreeing with the Town, the trial court dismissed the case with prejudice. Doty-Fielding appealed to this court. In Doty v. Town of South Prairie, 122 Wash. App. 333, 93 P.3d 956 (2004), we reversed the trial court, holding that because the fire fighter was not a Town employee for wages, she was a volunteer under the IIA and, therefore, the Act did not cover her.

*1056 ¶ 4 The Town appealed our decision to the Supreme Court. In Doty v. Town of South Prairie, 155 Wash.2d 527, 120 P.3d 941 (2005), the court affirmed our decision, holding that Doty-Fielding is not subject to the IIA's exclusive remedy provision and that the IIA does not provide the Town with immunity from civil suit. Our Supreme Court remanded the case to the trial court for further proceedings.

Second Case

¶ 5 The record before this court does not contain a copy of Doty-Fielding's claims against the Town. It does show that on September 29, 2006, the Town again filed for summary judgment on all the claims. In its motion, the Town asserted that Doty-Fielding failed to allege and could not prove that it breached its duty to avoid willful and wanton misconduct. In addition, the Town argued that Doty-Fielding had assumed any injury risk and that the fellow servant rule barred her claims. In support of its summary judgment motion, the Town presented excerpts of depositions by Doty-Fielding, Daryl Flood, and Harry "Jake" Doty.

¶ 6 No transcript of the superior court's proceedings has been provided this court. From the meager record before us, it appears that the trial court heard oral arguments and granted the Town's summary judgment motion on December 1, 2006. And that it later denied Doty-Fielding's motion for reconsideration. Doty-Fielding appeals.

ANALYSIS

Summary Judgment

¶ 7 Doty-Fielding argues that the trial court erred when it granted the Town summary judgment.

¶ 8 Washington law favors resolution of cases on their merits. Smith v. Arnold, 127 Wash.App. 98, 103, 110 P.3d 257 (2005). Summary judgment is proper only where there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. CR 56(c); Hisle v. Todd Pac. Shipyards Corp., 151 Wash.2d 853, 861, 93 P.3d 108 (2004). We review summary judgment orders de novo, performing the same inquiry as the trial court. Hisle, 151 Wash.2d at 860, 93 P.3d 108.

Negligence

¶ 9 Doty-Fielding argues that the Town breached its duty to provide her with a safe work environment when its fire department failed to properly train her as a volunteer fire fighter.

¶ 10 To maintain an action for negligence, a plaintiff must show (1) that the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff, (2) the defendant breached that duty, (3) the plaintiff was injured, and (4) the defendant's breach was the proximate cause of the injury. Hoffstatter v. City of Seattle, 105 Wash.App. 596, 599, 20 P.3d 1003 (2001). Whether a defendant owes a duty of care is a question of law that we review de novo. Hoffstatter, 105 Wash.App. at 601, 20 P.3d 1003.

¶ 11 Here, the parties disagree as to what duty the Town owed Doty-Fielding as a volunteer fire fighter. For the first time on appeal, Doty-Fielding contends that the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA)[3] requires that each employer provide a work environment that is as safe as reasonably possible to all workers, including volunteer fire fighters. The Town contends that Doty-Fielding assumed the risk when she volunteered to respond to the fire call and, thus, it did not breach its duty to avoid willful and wanton misconduct.

¶ 12 RCW 49.17.010 states that the legislature enacted WISHA "in the public interest for the welfare of the people of the state of Washington and in order to assure, insofar as may reasonably be possible, safe and healthful working conditions for every man and woman working in the state of Washington."

¶ 13 Unlike other statutes, WISHA does not include any exclusionary language to suggest a distinction between paid workers and volunteers. But even if WISHA does not include volunteers, chapter 296-305 WAC, regulating fire fighter safety, applies to all *1057 fire departments, including volunteer departments. That regulation provides that a fire department must establish, supervise, maintain, and enforce a safe and healthful working environment for workers in non-combat conditions and at fire scenes after the fire has been extinguished. WAC 296-305-01509.[4] The chapter also enumerates some of the requirements for fire training. WAC 296-305-05501.[5] For example, WAC 296-305-05503(10) establishes some frequency of training requirements.[6]

¶ 14 But the record before us contains little evidence related to Doty-Fielding's training. John Wood[7] testified by deposition that the training Doty-Fielding received regarding hose handling was not adequate and that Doty-Fielding received only between 12 to 14 hours of hose training during the year of her accident.

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Bluebook (online)
178 P.3d 1054, 143 Wash. App. 559, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/doty-fielding-v-town-of-south-prairie-washctapp-2008.