Price v. Chain Elec. Co.

259 So. 3d 1249
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedNovember 28, 2018
DocketNO. 18-CA-162
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 259 So. 3d 1249 (Price v. Chain Elec. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Price v. Chain Elec. Co., 259 So. 3d 1249 (La. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinion

JOHNSON, J.

Plaintiffs, Clyde and Mary Price, appeal the trial court's granting of summary judgment in favor of Defendant, Entergy Louisiana, L.L.C. ("ELL"), finding that ELL was Mr. Price's statutory employer and dismissing Plaintiffs' tort claims against ELL on the basis that Plaintiffs' exclusive remedy against ELL is in workers' compensation. For the following reasons, we affirm.

FACTS & PROCEDURAL HISTORY

This is Plaintiffs' second appeal. The first appeal was likewise from the trial court's granting of summary judgment in favor of ELL. However, this Court reversed the ruling and remanded for further proceedings on the basis that certain exhibits were not properly admitted into evidence for purposes of summary judgment and, thus, ELL failed to prove it was entitled to summary judgment. See Price v. Chain Electric Co. , 16-597 (La. App. 5 Cir. 4/12/17), 216 So.3d 388. On remand, ELL filed a second motion for summary judgment, which was granted on October 10, 2017 after a hearing. Plaintiffs now seek review of that judgment.

The facts have not changed since the first appeal, in which we set out the facts as follows:

*1251On June 9, 2005, Chain Electric Company ("Chain") and Entergy Services, Inc. ("ESI") entered into a written agreement, entitled "Entergy Systemwide Multipurpose Maintenance, Modification and Construction General Services Agreement" ("the Agreement"), bearing contract number 10092965. Pursuant to the Agreement, ESI and Chain agreed that any "affiliate" of ESI could issue Contract Orders to Chain requesting Chain's services. The parties further agreed that any and all Contract Orders issued by an affiliate were deemed to incorporate the provisions of the Agreement. The Agreement provides that an affiliate that issues a Contract Order to Chain is recognized as the statutory employer of Chain's employees.
On June 1, 2011, Chain and ELL entered into a Contract Order, bearing contract number 10318822 and providing that Chain would perform services for ELL, commencing on June 1, 2011 and ending on May 31, 2013. This Contract Order indicates that it was issued pursuant to the Agreement, number 10092965, between ESI and Chain.
On November 28, 2012, while working as an employee of Chain, Clyde Price was assisting with excavation and trenching work for the purpose of adding additional line capacity for ELL. Mr. Price sustained injuries when an incident or "cave-in" occurred in the trench where he was working. On December 2, 2013, Mr. Price and his wife, Mary Price, filed this lawsuit against Chain, Entergy Corporation, and/or its affiliate, alleging that defendants were negligent by failing to ensure that proper safety procedures were followed.1 Plaintiffs subsequently amended their petition to name ELL as a defendant, in lieu of Entergy Corporation.

Price , supra at 389-90.

In its second motion for summary judgment filed on remand on July 6, 2017, ELL asserted that it was Mr. Price's statutory employer and, therefore, it was immune from tort claims because Plaintiffs' exclusive remedy was in workers' compensation. ELL argued that it was an affiliate of ESI and, therefore, the Contract Order between ELL and Chain Electric incorporated the Agreement between Chain Electric and ESI, which expressly recognized ESI and its affiliates as a statutory employer.

In support of its motion for summary judgment, ELL submitted several exhibits, including the Agreement, the Contract Order, and the affidavits of Diane Ehlers (a procurement specialist for ESI), Randy Gegenheimer (a construction supervisor with ELL), and Mark Otts (Assistant General Counsel - Corporate and Securities with ESI), all who attested that ELL was an affiliate of ESI and Entergy Corporation, Inc. ("Entergy Corporation"), the only named affiliate in the Agreement.

Plaintiffs filed an opposition arguing that ELL failed to prove it was an affiliate of ESI as defined in the Agreement. Specifically, Plaintiffs maintained that ELL failed to prove that it was owned by Entergy Corporation or that Entergy Corporation controls, directly or indirectly, more than 50% of the ownership interest or appoints ELL's directors or their functional equivalents. Additionally, Plaintiffs contended there was no valid contract between ELL and Chain Electric because the contract was signed on behalf of ELL by someone who Plaintiffs asserted did not have express authority to do so.

*1252In support of its opposition, Plaintiffs relied on the affidavits and deposition testimonies of Ms. Ehlers, Mr. Gegenheimer, and Mr. Otts. Plaintiffs argued that Ms. Ehlers and Mr. Gegenheimer did not have the requisite knowledge to testify whether ELL was an affiliate of Entergy Corporation. Plaintiffs further maintained that Mr. Otts' testimony was inconsistent and, thus, unreliable.

At the conclusion of the hearing on the motion for summary judgment, the trial court found that "based upon the exhibits, specifically, Mr. Otts' affidavit and organizational chart," ELL was an affiliate of Entergy Corporation. As a result, the trial court granted ELL's motion for summary judgment, finding Plaintiffs' exclusive remedy was in workers' compensation.

ISSUE

On appeal, Plaintiffs challenge the granting of summary judgment in favor of ELL on the basis it was Mr. Price's statutory employer. Plaintiffs maintain that ELL failed to prove that it was entitled to judgment as a matter of law because it failed to prove that it was an affiliate of Entergy Corporation as defined in the Agreement. Plaintiffs aver that because ELL failed to prove it was an affiliate of Entergy Corporation, it could not take advantage of the Agreement, which provided for a contractual statutory employer relationship.

LAW & ANALYSIS

Appellate courts review summary judgment de novo under the same criteria that govern the district court's consideration of whether summary judgment is appropriate. Batiste v. United Fire & Casualty Co. , 17-482 (La. App. 5 Cir. 3/14/18), 241 So.3d 491, 496. Specifically, summary judgment shall be granted "if the motion, memorandum, and supporting documents show that there is no genuine issue as to material fact and that the mover is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." La. C.C.P. art. 966(A)(3).

A fact is material if it potentially ensures or precludes recovery, affects a litigant's ultimate success, or determines the outcome of the legal dispute. Jackson v. City of New Orleans , 12-2742 (La. 1/28/14), 144 So.3d 876, 882, cert. denied , --- U.S. ----, 135 S.Ct. 197, 190 L.Ed.2d 130 (2014).

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259 So. 3d 1249, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/price-v-chain-elec-co-lactapp-2018.