Pippen v. Tronox, LLC

359 F. Supp. 3d 440
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Mississippi
DecidedJanuary 14, 2019
DocketCIVIL ACTION NO. 1:17-CV-123-SA-DAS
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 359 F. Supp. 3d 440 (Pippen v. Tronox, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Mississippi primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pippen v. Tronox, LLC, 359 F. Supp. 3d 440 (N.D. Miss. 2019).

Opinion

Sharion Aycock, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

On August 14, 2014 George Rice died in a work-related accident in Hamilton, Mississippi. George Rice's daughters Shaquanda Rice Pippen and Angelia Rice are the co-administrators of George Rice's estate and they filed this wrongful death suit on August 10, 2017. See Complaint [1]. Now before the Court is Defendant Tronox, LLC's Motion for Summary Judgment [57].1

Factual and Procedural Background

The following facts are taken directly from the summary judgment record in this case. The Court resolves factual controversies in the non-movant Plaintiffs' favor. Little v. Liquid Air Corp. , 37 F.3d 1069, 1075 (5th Cir. 1994).

Defendant Tronox operates a plant in Hamilton, Mississippi that manufactures titanium dioxide. At the time of his death, George Rice worked for Jimco Integrated Services, Inc. Jimco is an independent contractor that provides dredging and de-watering services at Tronox's plant pursuant to a Master Work Agreement. Tronox uses a series of large waste ponds to manage solid wastes generated by its production processes. Dredges are used to remove the solid waste from the waste ponds. A dredge is a floating vessel used for an excavation activity that is carried out at least partially or fully submerged under water, with the purpose of gathering up *444bottom sediments and disposing of them or transferring them to a different location.

During the early morning hours of August 12, 2014, Rice was operating a dredge on a waste pond at the Tronox plant. This particular dredge is a large piece of equipment, weighing in excess of 20,000 pounds, that floats on two large parallel pontoons. Water infiltrated at least one of the pontoons on the dredge causing it to lose stability and capsize. When the dredge capsized, Rice drowned.

On June 18, 2014, less than two months prior to Rice's death, Jimco removed the dredge from the waste pond with a crane and contracted with Allen Blasting and Coatings, Inc. to perform repairs to the dredge, including sandblasting and recoating of the pontoons. A new diesel engine was also installed in the dredge. According to Jimco employee Kenneth Conn, the dredge was listing to one side and was taken out of service for that reason. After a little over a month, the dredge was put back into service on July 26, 2014.

The Plaintiffs seek compensation for Rice's death and allege claims under Mississippi law for negligence and negligent misrepresentation against Tronox. Tronox now requests summary judgment in its favor on all of the Plaintiffs' claims.2 Tronox argues that it is immune from responsibility under Mississippi Code § 11-1-66, that the Plaintiffs cannot establish the elements of negligence, and that the Plaintiffs failed to bring forth any competent evidence to support their negligent misrepresentation claims. Briefing is complete and this Motion is ripe for review.

Standard of Review

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56 governs summary judgment. Summary judgment is warranted when the evidence reveals no genuine dispute regarding any material fact, and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. FED. R. CIV. P. 56(a). The rule "mandates the entry of summary judgment, after adequate time for discovery and upon motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party's case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial." Celotex Corp. v. Catrett , 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).

In reviewing the evidence, factual controversies are to be resolved in favor of the non-movant, "but only when ... both parties have submitted evidence of contradictory facts." Little , 37 F.3d at 1075. When such contradictory facts exist, the Court may "not make credibility determinations or weigh the evidence." Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Prods., Inc. , 530 U.S. 133, 150, 120 S.Ct. 2097, 147 L.Ed.2d 105 (2000).

The moving party "bears the initial responsibility of informing the district court of the basis for its motion, and identifying those portions of [the record] which it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact." Celotex , 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548. The nonmoving party must then "go beyond the pleadings" and "designate 'specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial.' " Id. at 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548 (citation omitted). Mere "conclusory allegations, speculation, [or] unsubstantiated assertions are inadequate to satisfy the nonmovant's burden." Pree v. Washington Cty. Bd. of Supervisors , No. 4:16-CV-122-SA, 2018 WL 522776, at *6 (N.D. Miss. Jan. 23, 2018) (citing *445Douglass v. United Servs. Auto. Ass'n , 79 F.3d 1415, 1429 (5th Cir. 1996) ). Mississippi substantive law applies in this diversity case. See Cox v. Wal-Mart Stores E., L.P. , 755 F.3d 231, 233 (5th Cir. 2014) (citing Wood v. RIH Acquisitions MS II, LLC ,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
359 F. Supp. 3d 440, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pippen-v-tronox-llc-msnd-2019.