Zachary Marcade Versus New York Marine and General Insurance Company and Nola Motor Club, L.L.C.

Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided October 4, 2023·No. 23-CA-17·Unknown

Opinion

ZACHARY MARCADE NO. 23-CA-17 VERSUS FIFTH CIRCUIT

NEW YORK MARINE AND GENERAL COURT OF APPEAL INSURANCE COMPANY AND NOLA MOTOR CLUB, L.L.C. STATE OF LOUISIANA

ON APPEAL FROM THE TWENTY-FOURTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT PARISH OF JEFFERSON, STATE OF LOUISIANA NO. 807-130, DIVISION "J"

HONORABLE STEPHEN C. GREFER, JUDGE PRESIDING

October 04, 2023

MARC E. JOHNSON

JUDGE

Panel composed of Judges Fredericka Homberg Wicker, Marc E. Johnson, and John J. Molaison, Jr.

REVERSED; REMANDED MEJ FHW JJM

COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT, ZACHARY MARCADE Charles M. Thomas Leandro R. Area

COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT/APPELLEE, NEW YORK MARINE AND GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY AND NOLA MOTOR CLUB, L.L.C.

Mark C. Dodart Stuart G. Richeson James H. Gilbert Harrison M. Martin

JOHNSON, J.

Appellant, Zachary1 Marcade, seeks review of the 24th Judicial District Court’s November 14, 2022 judgment granting the summary judgment filed by Defendants/Appellees’, New York Marine and General Insurance Company and NOLA Motor Club, L.L.C.’s (collectively referred to as “NOLA Motor Club”), . Mr. Marcade sustained serious injuries to his left leg after a collision with a go-kart operated by his son’s minor friend at NOLA Motor Club’s kart track in Jefferson Parish. For the following reasons, we reverse the district court’s judgment and remand the matter.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Mr. Marcade and his wife celebrated the birthday of their 12 year old son, along with two of their son’s minor friends, on August 9, 2019 at a party held at the NOLA Motorsports Park, operated by NOLA Motor Club, in Avondale, LA. The party of five participated in the first heat of a race without incident. During the second heat of the race, Kart #4, driven by one of their minor son’s friends, who is referred to in the case record as “ST”, spun out in front of Kart #14, the kart Mr. Marcade was driving. Mr. Marcade’s kart collided into ST’s kart at full speed, and Mr. Marcade was ejected from Kart #14 upon impact. According to a medical report completed by the NOLA Motor Club personnel in response to the accident, a medic placed Mr. Marcade’s deformed left leg in a splint and noted that there were no other visible injuries. Thereafter, Mr. Marcade was released to the care of West Jefferson EMS for further treatment.

Before the group began the karting activity, Mr. Marcade’s wife signed a Parental Consent, Release and Waiver of Liability, Assumption of Risk, and Indemnity Agreement form, and their son signed a Minor’s Assumption of Risk

1 Here, we use the same spelling of Appellant’s first name as the case caption, although the record suggests it should be spelled “Zacharie”.

and Release and Waiver of Liabilty, before a witness who was an employee of the track. The group also provided NOLA Motor Sports with forms that had been signed by ST and his father the day before the party. On the parental consent form, ST’s father acknowledged:

I know the nature of the EVENT(S) and the Minor’s experience and capabilities, and believe the Minor to be qualified to participate in the Event(s). I will inspect the premises, facilities, and equipment to be used, or with which the Minor may come in contact. IF I OR THE MINOR BELIEVE ANTYTHING IS UNSAFE, I WILL INSTRUCT THE MINOR TO IMMEDIATELY LEAVE THE RESTRICTED AREA AND REFUSE TO PARTICIPATE FURTHER IN THE EVENT(S).

Through signing the forms, the adults also acknowledged the inherent danger and risk of harm karting poses, and NOLA Motorsports Park’s immunity from liability pursuant to La. R.S. 9:2795.4.

On June 5, 2020, Mr. Marcade filed a Petition for Damages against NOLA Motor Club. Mr. Marcade alleged that he “has suffered physical pain and suffering, mental anguish, medical expenses, permanent disability, and disfigurement among other damages” as a result of the accident that “was caused solely and proximately by the negligence of NOLA Motor Club.” NOLA Motor Club filed a Motion for Summary Judgment on May 5, 2022. In its motion, Appellees alleged that karting was a “motorized off-road vehicle activity” as contemplated by La. R.S. 9:2795.4, claimed that they met all of the statute’s requirements, and asserted the immunity provided by the statute. NOLA Motor Club further argued that Mr. Marcade could not claim the exception to immunity provided by La. R.S. 9:2795.4(C)(2) because the statute required activity sponsors to make “reasonable and prudent efforts to determine the ability of the participant [claiming the exception] to engage safely” in the activity, and not the other participants partaking in the activity. Mr. Marcade timely filed an opposition, arguing that the collision was caused by a twelve-year- old child and NOLA Motor Club violated its own safety policy in allowing a child

under the age of fifteen to operate a SR kart unless the parent confirmed the minor had prior karting experience; that NOLA Motor Club’s failure to make reasonable and prudent efforts to determine the participant’s ability to kart safely and their failure to make sure ST had prior karting experience “constituted willful or wanton disregard for the safety of the participant” pursuant to La. R.S. 9:2795.4(C)(2) did in fact apply in this case; NOLA Motor Club had to prove immunity; NOLA Motor Club’s conduct triggered two of the exceptions to immunity under the statute; and whether NOLA Motor Club confirmed that ST had prior karting experience was a genuine issue of material fact in dispute. In the alternative, Mr. Marcade also argued that La. R.S. 9:2795.4(C)(2) was unconstitutionally vague, and indefinite.

The district court held a hearing on the motion for summary judgment on October 25, 2022 and granted judgment in favor of NOLA Motor Club at the end of the hearing. The court found: 1) that NOLA Motor Club met the threshold of invoking the immunity statute’s protection; 2) the waiver executed by ST’s parent would satisfy the statute’s requirements such that any exception under Subsection B would not apply; 3) the father’s certification of ST’s ability to participate in the activity was the “best discharge” of NOLA Motor Club’s obligation to ensure that participants could safely engage in karting; 4) that, because ST’s father acknowledged that he knew that the child was going karting, knew the nature of karting, and determined that his child could safely participate, it was not NOLA Motor Club’s responsibility to second guess the parent’s assessment, so (C)(2) did not apply; 5) the disclosure and waiver executed by ST’s parent made resolution of the statutory construction question regarding who was a participant under La. R.S. 9:2794.4(C)(2) unnecessary; and 6) verifying that the parent knew about the SR kart safety policy was good practice, but not necessary to discharge any obligation that could be found under Subsection (C)(4), again because the parent certified that the child was capable of participating in the activity. The court also ruled that the

constitutionality of the statute was not properly before the court because the petition was not served upon the Attorney General.

This timely appeal followed.

ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR

Appellant assigns the following as error:

(1) The district court committed reversible error in granting the Motion for Summary Judgment because there was contradictory evidence that established genuine issues of material fact listed as such by NOLA Motor Club.

(2) The district court was not allowed to judge the facts or weigh the evidence at the hearing of the Motion but did so when it disregarded key testimony and inserted language into the parental consent form.

(3) The district court similarly erred when it found that the parental consent form outweighed the evidence of NOLA Motor Club’s willful and wanton disregard for its safety policy.

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Zachary Marcade Versus New York Marine and General Insurance Company and Nola Motor Club, L.L.C., (La. Ct. App. 2023).

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