State Farm Mutual Fire & Casualty Co. v. Shapkoff

525 So. 2d 65, 1988 La. App. LEXIS 218, 1988 WL 6755
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedFebruary 3, 1988
DocketNo. 86-1229
StatusPublished

This text of 525 So. 2d 65 (State Farm Mutual Fire & Casualty Co. v. Shapkoff) 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
State Farm Mutual Fire & Casualty Co. v. Shapkoff, 525 So. 2d 65, 1988 La. App. LEXIS 218, 1988 WL 6755 (La. Ct. App. 1988).

Opinion

DOUCET, Judge.

This is a subrogation suit brought by State Farm Mutual Fire and Casualty Company (hereinafter referred to as State Farm), against Jim Shapkoff and Sherwood Van Lines, Inc. (hereinafter referred to as Sherwood), to recover the amount that State Farm paid to its insureds, Herman and Joanne Willis, for the loss of their household belongings. The Willis’ household belongings were transported to Lees-ville, Louisiana by Sherwood and were stored in a warehouse owned by Jim Shap-koff. The warehouse, along with the Willis’ household belongings, was destroyed by fire.

The facts show that in mid 1979, Herman Willis, a member of the United States Army, was assigned by the Army to its military installation at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Upon receipt of orders for assignment, Major Willis requested that the Department of Defense arrange for the transportation of his family’s household belongings from Maryland to Louisiana.1

Sherwood was engaged by the Department of Defense for this purpose. The expense of the move and all costs associated with the move were paid by the United States Army. The shipment was received by Sherwood on August 16, 1979. In connection with this move, the Government Bill of Lading was issued by Col. Donald H. Mensch and the Bill of Lading bearing number M2120654 identified the shipper as BGAC Joint Personal Property Shipping Office, Washington, D.C. An internal control record for the benefit of Sherwood was prepared and identified as Sherwood’s Bill of Lading. This internal control record identifies Herman F. Willis as the shipper, but also identifies the Government Bill of Lading number M2120654 and the tariff rate 1-Y.

[67]*67All communication regarding the shipment and storage occurred between Sherwood as the carrier and the Department of Defense through its agency, the Joint Personal Shipping Office, the shipper.

Upon arrival at Fort Polk, Louisiana and by order of the Transportation Officer at Fort Polk, pursuant to a storage and transit certificate, the goods were stored temporarily and weighed. The shipment was certified by the Transportation Officer to weigh 13,600 pounds.

The Willis’ household belongings, along with the warehouse in which the belongings were temporarily being stored, were destroyed by fire on January 1,1980. As a result of the fire, the Willises were paid the sum of $15,000, in the aggregate, by the United States Department of Defense. 31 U.S.C. § 241. They also received $20,700 from State Farm under a homeowners policy which they had purchased on December 21, 1979.

The defendant carrier, Sherwood, reimbursed the United States the sum of $12,-087.42 through a set-off agreement. This represents $.60 per pound, the released value of the shipment recited by the bill of lading, or $8,160.00 plus $3,927.42, the amount charged for the freight by the carrier.

State Farm filed suit in the 30th Judicial District Court against Jim Shapkoff, as owner of the warehouse, and Sherwood, as the carrier seeking recovery of the amount State Farm paid its insured. Following a trial on the merits, the lower court judge ruled in favor of defendants, Jim Shapkoff and Sherwood, rejecting the demands of State Farm. It is from this judgment that plaintiff appeals.

On appeal, plaintiff-appellant urges that “The trial court erred in holding that the limitation of liability set forth in the government bill of lading is valid.” We disagree.

In support of plaintiff’s contention that the limitation of liability set forth in the government bill of lading is invalid, plaintiff first contends that Herman F. Willis, instead of the government, was the shipper of the goods that were destroyed. Plaintiff adds that since there are requirements of law which strictly regulate such transactions between private individuals and carriers, and because these strict requirements were not complied with, the carrier did not validly limit its liability.

The evidence that plaintiff relies on to establish plaintiff as the shipper is one document; a form prepared by Sherwood as an internal control record. Granted that this document specifies Mr. Willis as the shipper, however, the document clearly identifies the documents which actually control the relationship of the parties to this transaction, namely Government Bill of Lading number M2120654, and government rate tender 1-Y. Additionally, plaintiff relies on Anton v. Greyhound Van Lines, Inc., 591 F.2d 103 (1st Cir.1978) to support its contention that Mr. Willis should be regarded as the shippey. In Anton, supra, the plaintiff was allowed to recover from the carrier the full value of her household goods not paid by the Air Force. However, in a more recent decision, Howe v. Allied Van Lines, 622 F.2d 1147 (3rd Cir.1980) cert. den. 449 U.S. 992, 101 S.Ct. 528, 66 L.Ed.2d 289, the court citing and analyzing Anton, supra, specifically observed:

“The court mistakenly refers to the military person as the shipper, although it seems clear that the goods were, as here, shipped on a government bill of lading at a declared value of 60 cents per pound pursuant to a general tender to DOD. No mention is made of the opinion of section 22 (49 USC 10721) and apparently it was not called to the court’s attention. Had it been, we are confident that the result in Anton would have been different.”

Thus, based on recent jurisprudence, the fact that a government bill of lading was issued specifying the BGAC Joint Personal Property Shipping Office in Washington, D.C. as the shipper, the fact that all communication regarding the move occurred between the carrier and the Department of Defense through its Agency, the Joint Personal Property Shipping Office, and the fact that the expense of the move and all [68]*68costs associated with the move were paid by the United States Army, we conclude as did the lower court that the government, instead of Mr. Willis, was the shipper.

Having concluded that the government was the shipper in the instant situation, we must next address the question of whether the strict requirements of 49 U.S. C. § 20(11) (49 U.S.C. § 11707) apply to Government Bills of Lading. This very question was addressed in Howe, supra. The court in Howe concluded that 49 U.S.C. § 20(11) (49 U.S.C. § 11707, 49 U.S.C. § 10730) does not apply to Government Bills of Lading. Thus, transactions of this sort are not governed by the stringent requirements of 49 U.S.C. § 20(11) (49 U.S.C. § 11707, 49 U.S.C. § 10730

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Related

Juliet M. D. Anton v. Greyhound Van Lines, Inc.
591 F.2d 103 (First Circuit, 1978)
Howe v. Allied Van Lines, Inc.
449 U.S. 992 (Supreme Court, 1980)

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525 So. 2d 65, 1988 La. App. LEXIS 218, 1988 WL 6755, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-farm-mutual-fire-casualty-co-v-shapkoff-lactapp-1988.