Liberty Paper Board Co. v. Poe

15 Ohio Law. Abs. 521, 1932 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 1133
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 10, 1932
StatusPublished

This text of 15 Ohio Law. Abs. 521 (Liberty Paper Board Co. v. Poe) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Liberty Paper Board Co. v. Poe, 15 Ohio Law. Abs. 521, 1932 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 1133 (Ohio Ct. App. 1932).

Opinion

[522]*522OPINION

By POLLOCK, J.

The first error complained of is in the charge of the court. The court seemed to charge the relation of master and servant, using terms of employer and employee and laying down rules which the plaintiff in error claims do not apply to this case. We learn from the contract between these parties that Poe agreed to do the work of painting these stacks for a certain sum of money. In McGee v Stockton et, 103 NE, 388-390, it is said:

“It is well settled that where one lets a contract to another to do a particular work, reserving to himself no control over such work except the right to require it to conform to a particular standard when completed, he is, not liable for the negligence of the party to whom, the contract is let.. When the person employing may prescribe what shall be done, but not how it is to be done, or who is to do it, the person so employed is a contractor, and not a servant.”

In Thompson on Negligence, §680, it is said:

“Roundly stated, it is that the relation of master and servant does not subsist between the proprietor and the servant of the contractor; and therefore those obligations which the law imposes upon the master for the protection of one injured while in his service, do not rest upon the proprietor, but upon the contractor. On the other hand, the servant of the contractor must be deemed to be upon the premises of the proprietor by his invitation, express or implied; and therefore he owes him the same duty of guarding him against the consequences of hidden dangers on the premises, that a proprietor would in any case owe to a guest, a customer, or other person coming by invitation upon his premises.”

It was error for the court to charge the rules of employer and employee.

We then come to a consideration of what the duties of the person who invites a party to come on to his premises to do some work, and what is the liability of the parly doing so.

Libby Glass Co. v Gronau, 116 Oh St, 404; 155 NE, 500.

This is a case for doing like work under like circumstances except that the injured party had some notice of warning to be careful and also admitted he knew the condition of the roof. In the opinion the Supreme Court said:

“Defendant had the lawful right to use asphalt covering for its building- and in that respect the court charged that it owed the. plaintiff no duty to construct a roof otherwise * * ' He also testified that he knew of the composition of the asphalt roof on the building and that this roof was not as strong as metal roof and was not very solid.”

In Springfield Electric Light & Power Company v Calvert, L.A.R. (n.s.) 784, it is said:

“The law is well settled that an owner or occupant of land who, by invitation, express or implied, induces or pleads others to go upon premises for any lawful purpose, is liable for injuries occasioned by the un-* safe condition of the land or its approaches, if such condition was known to him and not to them, and was negligently suffered to exist without timely notice to the public, or to those who are likely to act upon such invitation; and, if there are hidden dangers upon the premises, he must use ordinary care to give persons rightfully upon the premises warning thereof; and that the owner owes such duty to an independent contractor or his servants while working upon his premises.”

[523]*5231 Thompson on Negligence, §979.

Webster Mfg. Co. v Mulvanney, 188 Ill., 311; 48 NE, 168.

Illinois C. R. Co. v Hopkins, 200 Ill., 122; 65 NE, 656.

Drennan v Grady, 167 Mass., 415; 45 NE, 741.

Samuelson v Cleveland Iron Min. Co., 49 Mich., 164; 43 Am. Rep., 456; 13 NE, 499.

Powers v Harlow, 53 Mich., 507; 5.1 Am. Rep., 154; 19 NW, 257.

Bennett v Louisville & N. R. Co., 102 U. S., 477; 26 L. Ed., 235.

Evansville & T. H. R Co. v Griffin, 100 Ind., 221; 50 Am. Rep., 783.

We think that this states the liability of the employer where a party comes on his premises to perform an agreed contract.

The question was also before the Supreme Court of the United States in Bennett v Railroad Company, 102 U. S., 577:

“The owner or occupant of land who induces or leads others to come upon it for a lawful purpose is liable in damages to them (they using due care) for injuries occasioned by the unsafe condition of the land or its approaches, if such condition was known to him and not to them, and he negligently suffered it to exist, without giving timely notice thereof to them or the public.”

In Sisler v Coal Co., 41 SE, 216, it is said:

“In Bright v Barnett St Record Co., 26 L.R.A., 524, the law is, I think correctly stated as follows: ‘With few exceptions, the cases agree in holding that the premises upon which an independent contractor is required to labor, for the benefit of the owner must be reasonably safe for the purposes of such labor, so far as freedom from concealed danger is concerned.’ We may thus say that, if the decision oí this case does in fact rest on any duty arising merely from the relation of the parties because of the contract between them, the unsafety of the premises must be such as was known, or by fair care could have been known to the defendant, and was unknown, and by fair care could not have been known to the contractor; for it is very clear that if the plaintiff knew, or if by fair care could have known, of the work which injured him, he cannot recover. Wharton Neg., §833. It is well established that if one knows, or by fair care could know, of danger threatening him, he cannot encounter that danger, and charge his injury upon the owner of the premises, even though that owner be in fault.”

In order to make the plaintiff in error liable he must have known that the roof was not safe or by ordinary care he could have known it, and further than that if the defendant in error knew, or by ordinary care for his own safety could have known that the roof was unsafe, he can not recover.

The person in charge of the plant at that time was Harry S. Cutler, who had charge of the office and sales room, and who entered intp this contract with the defendant in error, and Albert Earhart, who had charge of the operation of the plant at the time the contract was let and while the work was being performed. Nothing was said by either of these parties representing the plaintiff in error as to the condition of the roof, and no questions were asked. From the location of these stacks, which were within a few inches of the eave of the roof of the boiler building, it must have been in contemplation of each of these parties that on doing this work the defendant in error would go on the roof of the boiler building and at least use a part of it next these stacks. Defendant in error went to work on the morning of this accident without making any inquiry, took up their ropes and other appliances for doing this work, and about ten gallons of paint, which was furnished by the plaintiff in error. The first nineteen feet of this roof and next the eave was entirely safe.

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Related

Bennett v. Railroad Co.
102 U.S. 577 (Supreme Court, 1881)
Floyd v. Swiler
155 N.E. 500 (Ohio Court of Appeals, 1926)
Drennan v. Grady
45 N.E. 741 (Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, 1897)
Shevalier v. Seager
13 N.E. 499 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1887)
Webster Manufacturing Co. v. Mulvanny
48 N.E. 168 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1897)
Johnson v. City of Chicago
188 Ill. 311 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1900)
Illinois Central Railroad v. Hopkins
65 N.E. 656 (Illinois Supreme Court, 1902)
Evansville & Terre Haute Railroad v. Griffin
100 Ind. 221 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1885)
Crawford v. Spindler
103 N.E. 388 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1913)
Samuelson v. Cleveland Iron Mining Co.
13 N.W. 499 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1882)
Powers v. Harlow
19 N.W. 257 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1884)
Sesler v. Coal Co.
41 S.E. 216 (West Virginia Supreme Court, 1902)
Bright v. Barnett & Record Co.
26 L.R.A. 524 (Wisconsin Supreme Court, 1894)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
15 Ohio Law. Abs. 521, 1932 Ohio Misc. LEXIS 1133, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/liberty-paper-board-co-v-poe-ohioctapp-1932.