O'Brien v. Industrial Insurance Department

171 P. 1018, 100 Wash. 674, 1918 Wash. LEXIS 794
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedApril 3, 1918
DocketNo. 14429
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 171 P. 1018 (O'Brien v. Industrial Insurance Department) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
O'Brien v. Industrial Insurance Department, 171 P. 1018, 100 Wash. 674, 1918 Wash. LEXIS 794 (Wash. 1918).

Opinions

Chadwick, J.

Robert C. O’Brien was accidently killed while in the employ of the Virginia Street Dock & Warehouse Company. His widow, the respondent, presented to the industrial insurance commission a claim for compensation under the workmen’s compensation act. (Laws 1911, p. 345; Eem. Code, § 6604-1 et seq.) The claim was rejected by the commission, whereupon the respondent appealed from the order of rejection to the superior court of King county. That court entered a judgment allowing the claim, and the commission appeals to this court, assigning as error: (1) That the claimant is not entitled to compensation because the decedent was killed while working in a warehouse, which character of work is not extra hazardous within the meaning of the workmen’s compensation act; and (2) that the allowance of the conditional attorney’s fee is unwarranted by the statute.

The case is before us upon the findings of fact made by the trial court and the conclusions of law drawn therefrom, the evidence on which the findings are based not being in the record. The findings of fact follow:

“(1) That, on the 4th day of June, 1916, the Virginia Street Dock & Warehouse Company was a corporation engaged in conducting and carrying on a general public warehouse, dock and wharf operation business in the city of Seattle, state of Washington, and in storing and handling therein goods, wares and merchandise of other people and the general public for hire, in which said dock, warehouse and wharf operation it used and operated power driven machinery in conducting and carrying on its said business.

“(2) That, on the 3d day of-June, 1916, the said corporation directed one David W. West as its agent to procure for said corporation a watchman to work in and guard its said warehouse during the following day, and that, pursuant to such direction, the said David W. West sought out Eobert C. O’Brien and requested him to call at the office of said corporation at [676]*676its said plant on the morning of the following day, to wit: on Sunday, the 4th day of June, 1916, for the purpose of entering the employ of said corporation in said capacity, and that about seven o’clock on said Sunday morning, the said Eobert C. O’Brien reported at the said office of said corporation, and was then and there at said time, by the foreman of said corporation, who was in charge of the said plant of said corporation, placed at work as a watchman in charge of the warehouse of said corporation’s aforesaid plant, and the said foreman, at stated intervals with reference to his said work, and thereupon the said O’Brien went into the said warehouse and commenced to perform services under said employment.

“(3) That the said West was in no wise engaged in the business of operating said warehouse, and had no control or direction over the method or manner in which the said O’Brien should perform his services, but said services were to be performed, and were performed, by the said O’Brien under the order and direction of the officers and agents of the said corporation.

“(4) That, at the trial of this cause, it was stipulated between the attorneys for the respective parties in open court that the services and work in which the said O’Brien was engaged were of extra hazardous nature, and were such as to bring him within the terms of the workmen’s compensation act, in event he was in fact employed by and working for the said corporation, but it was not conceded by the attorney for the industrial insurance department that the said O’Brien was employed by and working for said corporation.

“ (5) That, shortly after said O’Brien went to work in said warehouse and while he was engaged in the line of the work for which he was employed, he attempted to operate a power driven elevator, and in some manner not disclosed by the evidence, started the elevator in operation and was caught between said elevator and the floor of the building and crushed to death, he having been found dead about four hours after he entered upon the discharge of his duties under such employment.

[677]*677“(6) That the said Robert C. O’Brien left surviving him, his widow, Emma A. O’Brien, and one son, to wit: William C. O’Brien, born September 7, 1901.

(7) That, within the time limited by law, the said corporation reported said accident and death to the industrial insurance department of the state of Washington. That, within the time limited by law, the said Emma A. O’Brien, widow of the said Robert C. O’Brien, deceased, presented and filed her claim in writing under the workmen’s compensation act with the workmen’s compensation commission of the state of Washington, and thereafter her claim came on regularly to be heard before said industrial insurance department, and upon said hearing the said industrial insurance department made and entered its order rejecting her said claim in its entirety, and denying her any and all relief.

“ (8) The court finds that each and every statement in the said claim so presented to the said industrial insurance department of the state of Washington by the said Emma A. O’Brien was and is trne.

“ (9) That, after the rejection of her said claim by said industrial insurance department, and within the time limited by law thereafter, the said Emma A. O ’Brien,. being a resident of King county, state of Washington, duly and regularly appealed to the superior court of the state of Washington in and for King county, from the order of said industrial insurance department rejecting her said claim.

“ (10) The court further finds that, in the prosecution of her said appeal to this court, the said Emma A. 0 ’Brien was compelled to, and did, employ said attorneys herein named, to prepare her said appeal and try this cause on said appeal, and that the judgment herein is one which will reverse the decision of the industrial insurance department and will affect the accident fnnds, and that a reasonable attorney fee to be allowed and paid to the said attorneys out of the administration fund for the trial of said cause in this superior court is one hundred fifty dollars; and the court further finds that, in event this cause shall be appealed to the su[678]*678preme court of the state of Washington by the said industrial insurance department, then in, such case, a reasonable attorney fee for the services of said attorneys on such appeal is one hundred dollars, which, in event of this cause being affirmed on such appeal, shall be payable to said attorneys out of the administration fund.”

Shortly after the judgment of the superior court was rendered, and within the time for appeal, this court handed down its opinion in the case of State v. Powles & Co., 94 Wash. 416, 162 Pac. 569. We held that a resolution of the commission bringing warehouses within the terms of the industrial insurance act was not vital to bring a private warehouse connected with a mercantile business under the law, there being no showing that employment in such a warehouse was either hazardous or extra hazardous. Upon the strength of that opinion, the Attorney General brings up this case, contending that the findings of the court are that the claimant was injured in a warehouse, and for that reason, no recovery can be had.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
171 P. 1018, 100 Wash. 674, 1918 Wash. LEXIS 794, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/obrien-v-industrial-insurance-department-wash-1918.