Gorman v. Transocean Air Lines

158 F. Supp. 339, 1957 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2424
CourtDistrict Court, D. Connecticut
DecidedDecember 23, 1957
DocketNo. 6900
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 158 F. Supp. 339 (Gorman v. Transocean Air Lines) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gorman v. Transocean Air Lines, 158 F. Supp. 339, 1957 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2424 (D. Conn. 1957).

Opinion

ANDERSON, District Judge.

This is a negligence action by a New York plaintiff, who has already received Workmen’s Compensation pursuant to the New York statute, against Trans-ocean Air Lines, a California corporation which qualified to do business in Connecticut on March 21, 1957.

The injury is alleged to have occurred while the plaintiff employee was servicing the defendant’s airplane at Idlewild Airport under a contract between the defendant and the plaintiff’s employer, Flight Dispatch Service. The defendant has moved to dismiss the complaint on the grounds that the action is barred by the Connecticut statute of limitations and that the plaintiff has been divested of his cause of action by assignment of it to the compensation carrier by virtue of the New York Workmen’s Compensation Law, § 29, McKinney’s Consol. Laws, c. 67, § 29.

Federal jurisdiction of this cause depends upon diversity of citizenship, 28 U.S.C.A. § 1332, and, therefore, whether the New York three year statute of limitation, Civil Practice Act, § 49 applies — as plaintiff contends — or the shorter, one year Connecticut statute, Gen.St.1949, § 8324 — as defendant contends — depends on the rule of conflict of laws which the courts of Connecticut would apply in like cases. Erie Railroad Co. v. Tompkins, 1938, 304 U.S. 64, 58 S.Ct. 817, 82 L.Ed. 1188, State of Maryland, ex rel. Thompson v. Eis Automotive Corporation, D.C.1956, 145 F.Supp. 444. The Connecticut courts have made it clear that in this type of situation, the statute of limitations of the forum applies. Thomas Iron Co. v. Ensign-Bickford Co., 1945, 131 Conn. 665, 42 A.2d 145.

However, plaintiff contends that Connecticut’s one year statute of limitations has not yet run because the defendant was without the state until March 21, 1957. The date of the acci[341]*341dent in New York in which plaintiff was allegedly injured by the defendant’s negligence when in control of its airplane and appurtenant facilities was September 13, 1954. Since this is a diversity suit, it is deemed commenced on the date of service upon the defendant, Ragan v. Merchants Transfer, 1949, 337 U.S. 530, 69 S.Ct. 1223, 93 L.Ed. 1520. This date was September 11, 1957. But the named defendant in this action was not within the state until March 21, 1957. Under the law of Connecticut, the time during which the defendant Transocean Air Lines was outside of the state is excluded in computing the time within which the action must be brought. Section 8330, Conn. General Statutes (1949 Revision). This section applies even though both parties are non-residents, Hatch v. Spofford, 1856, 24 Conn. 432, 442.

The defendant sets forth certain facts concerning the existence of certain corporations with similar names — which facts are not disputed by the plaintiff— and claims because of these facts that the statute of limitations has not been tolled. These facts are: a California Corporation by the name of Transocean Air Lines qualified to do business in Connecticut on April 28, 1949; on March 21, 1957 said Transocean Air Lines, which is a separate and distinct corporation from the named defendant filed a Charter amendment with the Connecticut Secretary of State changing its name to the Transocean Corporation of California; and on the same date that the change of name was filed with the Secretary of State, March 21, 1957, the Transocean Corporation of California filed a certificate of withdrawal from and termination of its authority to do business as a foreign corporation in Connecticut; and, furthermore, on the same date a California corporation named Transocean Air Lines, the named defendant herein, qualified to do business in Connecticut.

But these facts do not prevent the statute of limitations from being tolled against the named defendant. There is no allegation that the named defendant Transocean Air Lines is a successor to the Transocean Corporation of California or a successor to the Transoeean Air Lines which qualified to do business on April 28, 1949 and recorded its change of name on March 21, 1957. What the facts shown by the defendant’s affidavits do make clear is that the statute has run against the first Transocean Air Lines, but that cannot help the named defendant, for by the affidavit filed by its counsel, the named defendant is a separate and distinct corporation from the first Transocean Air Lines and its successor, the Transocean Corporation of California. The facts of the affidavits do imply that the named defendant did not have anything to do with the airplane which was involved in the accident in which the plaintiff was allegedly injured. But this defense — that the plaintiff has sued the wrong defendant ■ — does not permit that defendant to utilize a statute of limitations defense when the named defendant has not been available for process for the period of the statute.

Even if the pending motion to dismiss is treated as a motion for summary judgment under Rule 12(b), Fed. Rules Civ.Proc. 28 U.S.C.A. since matters outside the pleadings have been presented, the defendant cannot now be successful on his implied claim that the named defendant had nothing to do with the plane involved. The statement in the affidavit by the vice president of the Transocean Corporation of California that his corporation controlled the airplane involved is not sufficient to refute paragraph 12 of the complaint which alleges that the named defendant controlled and managed the plane on the day of the accident. There is no affidavit from the named defendant’s officers that this allegation of the complaint is not in fact true, nor does the Trans-ocean Corporation’s officer’s affidavit even claim that it had exclusive control. Therefore, on the basis of the present papers, which on the most favorable light for the defendant raise a genuine [342]*342issue of fact in regard to the named defendant’s control of the craft involved, summary judgment will not lie at this time because it cannot be held as a matter of law that the named defendant is not the proper party defendant. Of course, if this dispute over who had control of the plane can be disposed of by further affidavits and/or depositions or interrogatories, there is no reason why this issue cannot be presented on a later motion for summary judgment.

Therefore, since the action is timely under the Connecticut statute of limitations because the named defendant has not been within the state for the year period, it is necessary to decide whether or not the plaintiff has been so deprived of his cause of action by operation of the New York Workmen’s Compensation statute, that he cannot remain in this suit as a party plaintiff, as the defendant also contends.

Section 29 of the New York statute provides that if an injured employee who has received compensation does not commence his tort action against the third party tort-feasor within the statutory period prescribed, there is an assignment of the common law tort cause of action to the compensation carrier. Since the Connecticut courts’ conflicts rule is that the law of the place of the tort creates, defines and limits a right of action, Bohenek v. Niedzwiecki, 1955, 142 Conn. 278, 113 A.2d 509, the Connecticut courts would interpret the New York statute’s effect on the common law tort cause of action as the New York courts do.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
158 F. Supp. 339, 1957 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2424, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gorman-v-transocean-air-lines-ctd-1957.