law-workplace-injury

law-workplace-injury | workers compensation cases | premises liability | product s liability,

RECENT TEXAS SUPREME COURT OPINIONS: WORK PLACE & WORK-RELATED
INJURY SUITS | OCCUPATIONAL INJURY AND DEATH

SUPREME COURT DISAGREES WITH COURT OF APPEALS IN TRUCKER'S PERSONAL INJURY SUIT
AGAINST MAKER OF TRAILER - NO DESIGN DEFECT FOUND - NO LIABILITY
Timpte Industries, Inc. v. Gish, No. 08-0043 (Jun. 5, 2009) (Medina)
(product liability, supreme court finds no defect in design of trailer from which worker fell and suffered major
injuries)

TXI Operations, LP v. Perry, No. 05-0030 (Tex. Feb. 27, 2009)(Green)(premises liability, duty of warn of danger,
private road defect, sufficiency of speed limit warning sign)
TXI OPERATIONS, L.P. v. DAVID PERRY; from Liberty County; 9th district (09-04-00070-CV, ___ SW3d ___, 11-
18-04)
The Court affirms the court of appeals' judgment.
Justice Green delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Chief Justice Jefferson, Justice O'Neill, Justice
Wainwright, Justice Brister, Justice Medina, and Justice Johnson joined.
Justice Hecht delivered a dissenting opinion, in which Justice Medina and Justice Willett joined.
Dissent by Hecht

Entergy Gulf States, Inc. v. Summers, No. 05-0272 (Tex. 2009)(Substitute opinion by Green) (limitation of
liability for industrial accidents, premises owner as general contractor for workers compensation exclusive remedy
purposes, industrial plants, industrial accidents, refinery explosion)
Justice Hecht delivered a concurring opinion of the Court.
Justice Willett delivered a concurring opinion.
Justice O'Neill delivered a dissenting opinion, in which Chief Justice Jefferson and Justice Medina joined.

Hcbeck, Ltd. v. Rice, No. 06-0418 (Tex. 2009)(Green)(worker's compensation, exclusive remedy defense, extent
to which a general contractor must “provide” workers’ compensation insurance under the Act to qualify for
statutory employer status and the resulting immunity from the work-related claims of a subcontractor’s employees)
Justice Johnson delivered a dissenting opinion, in which Justice Medina joined.
(Justice O'Neill not sitting)

In re Labatt Food Service, LP, No. 07-0419 (Tex. 2009)(Johnson)
(arbitration mandamus, arbitration of wrongful death claim by nonsubscribers compelled)

Brookshire Grocery v. Goss, No. 07-0085 (Tex. Aug. 29, 2008)(per curiam)
(workplace safety, injury, judgment for injured employee reversed, no duty)
A grocery store employee was injured when she attempted to maneuver around a loaded cart. A jury found that
her employer’s negligence proximately caused the incident, and the court of appeals affirmed the trial court’s
judgment. Because we conclude that any danger of stepping around such carts is commonly known, we hold that
the employer had no duty to warn employees of the risk or provide specialized training to avoid that hazard. We
reverse and render judgment that the employee take nothing. * * *
Because we conclude that Brookshire owed no duty to warn Goss of a risk commonly known and appreciated, we
grant the petition for review and, without hearing argument, we reverse the court of appeals’ judgment and render
judgment for Brookshire.

G.E. v. Moritz, No. 04-0871 (Tex. June 13, 2008)(Brister) (workplace injury, premises liability, independent
contractor, no duty holding precludes land owner liability for contractor's injury)
Justice Scott Brister delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Justice Hecht, Justice Wainwright, Justice Medina,
and Justice Willett joined.
Justice Green delivered a dissenting opinion, in which Chief Justice Jefferson and Justice Johnson joined
(Justice O'Neill not sitting)

Texas Mutual Ins. Co. v. Ledbetter, No. 06-0814 (Tex. Apr. 4, 2008)(Brister)(workers comp, subrogation claim)
TEXAS MUTUAL INSURANCE COMPANY v. PAULA LEDBETTER, REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ESTATE OF
CHARLES WADE LEDBETTER, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS NEXT FRIEND OF DUSTIN WADE LEDBETTER, A
MINOR, AND TONJA LEDBETTER AND JAMIE LEDBETTER, INDIVIDUALLY; from Jones County; 11th
district (11-05-00098-CV, 192 S.W.3d 912, 06-01-06) 2 petitions
motion for emergency relief from declaratory judgment action dismissed as moot
The Court affirms in part and reverses in part the court of appeals' judgment and remands the case to the
trial court.
Justice Brister delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Chief Justice Jefferson, Justice Hecht, Justice
O'Neill, Justice Wainwright, Justice Medina, Justice Green, and Justice Willett joined, and in which Justice
Johnson joined as to Parts I through III and Part V.

PETITIONS DENIED BY THE TEXAS SUPREME COURT

08-0400
DR. CAMIL KREIT, M.D., P.A. v. LINDA YOUNG; from Polk County; 11th district
(11-06-00149-CV, 253 SW3d 790, 02-22-08, pet. denied Aug 2008) (personal injury, workplace safety) 3 petitions
This is a personal injury suit. Linda Young sued her employer and a furniture manufacturer for injuries she
sustained when her office chair broke and she fell. She later filed an amended pleading naming Dr. Camil Kreit, M.
D., P.A. a/k/a Camil Ibrahim as a defendant. When this defendant did not respond to requests for admission,
Young filed a motion for partial summary judgment. The trial court granted the motion and, after an evidentiary
hearing, rendered final judgment in favor of Young and against Dr. Camil Kreit, M.D., P.A. a/k/a Camil Ibrahim.
Camil Ibrahim a/k/a Camil Kreit and Dr. Camil Kreit, M.D., P.A. have separately appealed from this judgment.
Holding. The judgment of the trial court is affirmed in part and reversed and remanded in part. That portion of the
judgment finding Dr. Kreit liable for a negligence cause of action and awarding Young past and future medical
expenses of $104,527.80 is affirmed. That portion of the judgment finding Dr. Kreit liable for fraud and awarding
Young fraud damages, past and future lost wages, and past and future mental anguish is reversed; and these
issues are remanded for a new trial.

07-0574
WILLIAM LOWE, M.D. v. MARY HERNANDEZ; from Tarrant County; 2nd district (02-06-00132-CV, ___ S.W.3d
___, 06-07-07) (job termination, injury, ability to perform job responsibilities, proximate cause)
In five issues, Appellant William Lowe, M.D. asserts that the trial court erred in awarding judgment, following a jury
trial, to Appellee Mary Hernandez for a job termination claim following a course of surgical and medical treatment
provided by Dr. Lowe. We affirm.

08-0108
RAMON CARDENAS AND MARIA CARDENAS v. JOE WILLIAMSON CONSTRUCTION CO., INC.; from Hidalgo
County; 13th district (13-06-00096-CV, ___ S.W.3d ___, 11-20-07, pet. denied April 2008)(workplace injury)
Appellants, Ramon Cardenas and his wife, Maria Cardenas, sued appellee, Joe Williamson Construction Co., Inc.
(Williamson Construction), for personal injuries and damages sustained by Mr. Cardenas when he fell at a
construction site. Williamson Construction was the general contractor, and Mr. Cardenas was an employee of one
of Williamson Construction's subcontractors, L & I Steel. Williamson Construction filed a traditional motion for
summary judgment which the trial court granted. By one issue, appellants contend that the trial court erred in
granting summary judgment in favor of Williamson Construction because a material fact issue remains regarding
the duty element of their negligence claim. We affirm.

07-0063
DARLETA ROCHELLE JOHNSON, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ESTATE OF BRAD F.
JOHNSON, SR., DECEASED, AND AS NEXT FRIEND OF BRAD JOHNSON, JR., JERELLE JOHNSON AND
AMETHYST JOHNSON, MINORS v. TRANSIT MIX CONCRETE & MATERIALS COMPANY AND TRINITY
MATERIALS, INC.; from Jefferson County; 11th district (11-03-00300-CV, ___ SW3d ___,10-12-06, pet. denied
Feb 2008) (wrongful death, workplace injury)
In 1999, Brad Johnson Sr. was killed while working at a sand and gravel mine owned and operated by Trinity
Materials, Inc. and Transit Mix Concrete & Materials Company.[1] Darletta Rochelle Johnson, individually and as
representative of the estate of her husband Brad F. Johnson Sr. and as next friend of the three minor children,
Brad Johnson Jr., Jerelle Johnson, and Amethyst Johnson, filed suit against Trinity under the Wrongful Death Act,
Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. '' 71.001 B .012 (Vernon 1997 & Supp.2006), and the Texas Survival Statute,
Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code Ann. ' 71.021 (Vernon 1997).   The jury found Trinity negligent and awarded
Johnson's estate and survivors $164 million in damages. In its final judgment, the trial court remitted the award to
$27,357,090.83. We reverse and render.