Richard J. Hartfiel v. Raymond Wilburn Allison, T. J. Potter Trucking, Inc., Westfield Insurance Company, intervenor

Court of Appeals of Minnesota·Decided January 25, 2016·No. A15-1149·Unpublished

Opinion

This opinion will be unpublished and may not be cited except as provided by Minn. Stat. § 480A.08, subd. 3 (2014).

STATE OF MINNESOTA

IN COURT OF APPEALS

A15-1149

Richard J. Hartfiel,

Appellant,

vs.

Raymond Wilburn Allison,

Respondent,

T. J. Potter Trucking, Inc., Respondent,

Westfield Insurance Company, intervenor, Respondent.

Filed January 25, 2016

Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded Schellhas, Judge

Sherburne County District Court File No. 71-CV-11-1331

William J. Krueger, William Krueger, P.A., New Brighton, Minnesota (for appellant) Raymond W. Allison, Becker, Minnesota (pro se respondent)

William L. Davidson, Brian A. Wood, Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson, P.A., Minneapolis, Minnesota (for respondent T. J. Potter Trucking, Inc.)

Deborah C. Eckland, Scott R. Johnson, Goetz & Eckland P.A., Minneapolis, Minnesota (for respondent Westfield Insurance Company)

Considered and decided by Schellhas, Presiding Judge; Cleary, Chief Judge; and Randall, Judge.* UNPUBLISHED OPINION

SCHELLHAS, Judge Appellant challenges the summary-judgment dismissal of his claims against respondent trucking company for negligent hiring and negligent retention of respondent employee. Appellant also argues that the district court erred by concluding that an alleged settlement agreement between appellant and respondent trucking company is unenforceable and by permitting the trucking company’s insurance company to intervene in the action. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.

FACTS

Appellant Richard Hartfiel drove truck for respondent T. J. Potter Trucking Inc. as an independent owner-operator. Respondent Raymond Allison drove truck for Potter Trucking as an employee. On June 4, 2010, while Hartfiel was sitting in his truck at Potter Trucking, Allison attacked him with an approximately three-and-a-half foot steel bar.1 Hartfiel suffered broken bones and other injuries and incurred over $75,000 in medical expenses. Hartfiel sued Potter Trucking in September 2011 for negligent hiring, negligent

*

Retired judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals, serving by appointment pursuant to Minn. Const. art. VI, § 10. 1 Allison was convicted of third-degree assault for the attack.

retention, and negligent supervision of Allison.2 Potter Trucking’s general liability insurer, respondent Westfield Insurance Company (Westfield), denied coverage for Hartfiel’s claims.

On November 14, 2011, Potter Trucking sent a draft Miller-Shugart agreement to Hartfiel and, on November 16, informed Westfield by telephone that it was discussing a Miller-Shugart agreement with Hartfiel.3 On November 21, Hartfiel sent Potter Trucking a revised draft of the Miller-Shugart agreement. On or about December 16, Potter Trucking orally accepted Hartfiel’s revisions and informed the district court in writing that it had reached a Miller-Shugart agreement with Hartfiel and that it anticipated that the agreement would be executed “in the very near future.” But on January 12, 2012, as a condition to signing the Miller-Shugart agreement, Hartfiel requested that Potter Trucking provide written notice to Westfield regarding Potter Trucking’s intent to enter into a Miller-Shugart agreement with Hartfiel. Potter Trucking gave written notice to Westfield on January 13. On January 19, Potter Trucking informed Hartfiel that Westfield had not made a final decision but would be retaining defense counsel. Westfield thereafter retained defense counsel for Potter Trucking, and the parties’ Miller-Shugart discussions ended.

2 Hartfiel sued Allison for assault and battery and settled those claims, which are not the subject of this appeal. Hartfiel also asserted, but later abandoned, negligent supervision and vicarious-liability claims against Potter Trucking. 3 A Miller-Shugart agreement takes its name from Miller v. Shugart, 316 N.W.2d 729 (Minn. 1982). Alton M. Johnson Co. v. M.A.I. Co., 463 N.W.2d 277, 278 n.1 (Minn. 1990). “In a Miller-Shugart settlement, the insured, having been denied any coverage for a claim, agrees claimant may enter judgment against him for a sum collectible only from the insurance policy. To be binding on the insurer if policy coverage is found to exist, the settlement amount must be reasonable.” Id.

Hartfiel moved to enforce the Miller-Shugart agreement; Potter Trucking moved for summary judgment on Hartfiel’s claims of negligent hiring, negligent retention, and negligent supervision; and Westfield moved to intervene. The district court granted Westfield’s motion to intervene for the limited purpose of opposing Hartfiel’s enforcement motion, denied Hartfiel’s motion to enforce the agreement, and denied Potter Trucking’s motion for summary judgment. Following additional discovery and Potter Trucking’s second motion for summary judgment, the court granted summary judgment to Potter Trucking.

This appeal follows.

DECISION

Miller-Shugart agreement Hartfiel argues that the district court erred by concluding that the Miller-Shugart agreement between Hartfiel and Potter Trucking was unconsummated and unenforceable. “A settlement agreement is a contract, and the court examines the language of the agreement to determine the intent of the parties.” Curtis v. Altria Group, Inc., 813 N.W.2d 891, 901 (Minn. 2012). “Generally, the existence of a contract, as well as the terms of that contract, are questions of fact to be determined by the fact-finder.” TNT Props., Ltd. v. Tri- Star Developers LLC, 677 N.W.2d 94, 101 (Minn. App. 2004) (citing Bergstedt, Wahlberg, Berquist Assocs., Inc. v. Rothchild, 302 Minn. 476, 480, 225 N.W.2d 261, 263 (1975)). “But where the relevant facts are undisputed, the existence of a contract is a question of law, which this court reviews de novo.” Id.

“[T]o constitute a full and enforceable settlement, there must be a definite offer and acceptance with a meeting of the minds on the essential terms of the agreement.” Id. at 100–01 (citing Jallen v. Agre, 264 Minn. 369, 373, 119 N.W.2d 739, 743 (1963)). “[W]here the offer is clear, definite, and explicit, and leaves nothing open for negotiation, it constitutes an offer, acceptance of which will complete the contract.” Short v. Sun Newspapers, Inc., 300 N.W.2d 781, 786 (Minn. 1980) (quotation omitted). Acceptance consists of an act that demonstrates “a manifestation of assent when evaluated under an objective standard.” Holman Erection Co. v. Orville E. Madsen & Sons, Inc., 330 N.W.2d 693, 695 (Minn. 1983). “‘[T]o give rise to a binding contract, [the acceptance] must . . . comply exactly with the requirements of the offer.’” Jacobs v. Cable Constructors, Inc., 704 N.W.2d 205, 208 (Minn. App. 2005) (alteration in original) (quoting Minar v. Skoog, 235 Minn. 262, 265, 50 N.W.2d 300, 302 (1951)).

Hartfiel argues that the draft Miller-Shugart agreement that he sent to Potter Trucking on November 21, 2011, was a definite offer that Potter Trucking accepted orally and then in writing by its December 16 letter to the district court. He further argues that Potter Trucking satisfied any condition precedent of notice on November 16, when it informed Westfield by telephone that it was discussing a Miller-Shugart agreement with Hartfiel. We disagree. Both drafts of the agreement exchanged by the parties in November 2011 included a paragraph providing that “notice of their intent to enter into this agreement was provided to [Westfield] on ___________.” The parties’ agreed-upon inclusion of this provision contradicts Hartfiel’s assertion that Potter Trucking’s November 16 telephone call to Westfield constituted sufficient notice to Westfield. Moreover, Hartfiel’s argument

that the November 16 telephone call to Westfield satisfied the notice requirement is undermined by his January 2012 request to Potter Trucking, as follows:

In order to ensure the next steps in the process, before your client signs the agreement, we need any and all documents you’ve sent to [Westfield] saying you are in the process of negotiating a settlement with us and their responses.

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Richard J. Hartfiel v. Raymond Wilburn Allison, T. J. Potter Trucking, Inc., Westfield Insurance Company, intervenor, (Mich. Ct. App. 2016).

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