Martinez v. Zia Co.

664 P.2d 1021, 100 N.M. 8
CourtNew Mexico Court of Appeals
DecidedMay 17, 1983
DocketNo. 6093
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 664 P.2d 1021 (Martinez v. Zia Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Martinez v. Zia Co., 664 P.2d 1021, 100 N.M. 8 (N.M. Ct. App. 1983).

Opinion

OPINION

WOOD, Judge.

In this worker’s compensation case, the trial court increased the compensation award by ten percent on the basis that the injury “results from the negligence of the employer in failing to supply reasonable safety devices in general use for the use or protection of the workman * * NMSA 1978, § 52 — 1—10(B). Defendants appeal. We discuss: (1) pleading; (2) safety device; (3) general use; and (4) dispose of two motions.

Pleading

The claim for compensation alleged:

Plaintiff is entitled to an increase of ten (10%) percent of her [sic] ordinary award herein by reason of the Defendant employers [sic] failure to supply reasonable safety devices in general use for the use and protection of workers within the circumstances of this case.

NMSA 1978, § 52-l-10(E) provides:

No employee shall file a claim for increased compensation * * * because of the lack of a safety device * * * unless the claim identifies the specific safety device which it is claimed was not furnished by the employer.

Defendants assert that the safety device contention should be dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Their argument is twofold. First, they allege the claim was legally deficient and, thus, could not support the award. Second, they contend the trial court erred in refusing defendants’ request ed finding that the claim was legally deficient. Both arguments are based on the deficient pleading; the complaint did not identify the specific safety device.

We agree that the safety device allegation in the complaint failed to comply with § 52-l-10(E), and was legally deficient. Defendants did not move to dismiss for failure to state a claim. See NMSA 1978, Civ.P.R. 12(b)(6) (Repl.Pamp.1980). Defendants assert their failure to challenge the legal sufficiency of the pleading prior to trial is of no consequence because the failure to state a claim can be raised at any time. See Jernigan v. Clark and Day Exploration Company, 65 N.M. 355, 337 P.2d 614 (1959). We assume, but do not decide, that the question of failure to state a claim was properly before the court by defendants’ requested finding.

Because the safety device claim was legally deficient, we also assume that no safety device issue was raised by the pleadings and that if defendants had objected at trial to testimony concerning the safety device issue, the trial court could properly have sustained the objection. However, there was no objection.

NMSA 1978, Civ.P.R. 15(b) (Repl.Pamp. 1980), states:

Where issues are tried by implied consent of the parties, they will be treated as if they had been raised in the pleadings. Terry v. Terry, 82 N.M. 113, 476 P.2d 772 (1970); White v. Wayne A. Lowdermilk, Inc., 85 N.M. 100, 509 P.2d 575 (Ct.App.1973).

Defendants assert that use of the Rules of Civil Procedure is inappropriate. They recognize that NMSA 1978, Civ.P.R. 8(e) (Repl.Pamp.1980) states that technical forms of pleading are not required, but point out that Civ.P.R. 8(e) is not applicable because of NMSA 1978, § 52-1-34. That statute provides:

The Rules of Civil Procedure * * * shall apply to all claims * * * under the Workmen’s Compensation Act except where provisions of the Workmen’s Compensation Act directly conflict with these rules, in which case the provisions of the Workmen’s Compensation Act shall govern.

We agree that the pleading requirement of § 52-l-10(E) governs over Civ.P.R. 8(e), but that is a non-issue.

We have proceeded on the basis that the safety device claim was not an issue raised by the pleadings. The safety device issue was before the trial court because that issue was tried with implied consent. Defendants do not claim that any provision of the compensation statute directly conflicts with Civ.P.R. 15(b). Under § 52-1-34, Civ.P.R. 15(b) was applicable.

The safety device claim is not to be dismissed on the basis of a pleading defect, because it was tried by consent of the parties.

Safety Device

The trial court’s unchallenged finding is that the accident occurred “when plaintiff, while operating a Bobcat, was backfilling a foundation and the machine hit some solid concrete causing an injury to plaintiff’s back.” The testimony indicates plaintiff was backing the machine when the accident occurred.

The trial court found:

At the time of the accident, the Bobcat that plaintiff was using was not equipped with a rear view mirror thus preventing plaintiff from seeing behind him, the area which he was working. The defendant-employer had other Bobcats with such mirrors.

Substantial evidence supports the finding. Plaintiff testified:

Q Was there any way that you could have seen what was behind you before you hit it?
A No[t], really, because your back end of the seat is way up here, and the window is way up.
Q So, there was no way that you could have seen what you hit?
A Unless I had a mirror. If I had a mirror on the side or at least on the top.
Q This machine didn’t come with mirrors?
A Some of them have, but that one didn’t have any.

The trial court also found that “such mirror * * * was a safety device”. Defendants contend “that under the circumstances” the rearview mirror was “not a safety device within the meaning of Section 52-1-10 NMSA 1978.” Defendants rely on the statement in Hicks v. Artesia Alfalfa Growers Association, 66 N.M. 165, 169, 344 P.2d 475 (1959):

[N]ot all things which promote safety can be considered as safety devices, and even those things which might be safety devices for one purpose may not be so for another purpose. Were it otherwise, practically every workmen’s compensation case would come within the provisions of the increased penalty statute.

In Hicks there were heavy gauge wires holding sections of a prefabricated building in place during shipment. During unloading, Hicks was injured. The injury occurred because all the wires were cut prior to any unloading rather than cutting the wires for a particular section as the particular section was unloaded.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
664 P.2d 1021, 100 N.M. 8, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/martinez-v-zia-co-nmctapp-1983.