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Keller v. Odin Management8/19/1998
KELLER v. ODIN MGMT. INC., 30682 (La.App. 2 Cir. 8/19/98);
APPEAL FROM TWENTY-SIXTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, PARISH OF BOSSIER, NO. 95,361, STATE OF LOUISIANA, HONORABLE CECIL P. CAMPBELL, II, J.
In this personal injury action, the plaintiff, Reine Keller, appeals the trial court's judgment granting an involuntary dismissal in favor of the defendants, Odin Management, Inc. ("Odin"), and U.S. Fire Insurance Company. She also challenges the propriety of the summary judgment in favor of H & R Block Eastern Tax Services, Inc. ("H & R Block"). In the consolidated case, H & R Block appeals the summary judgment requiring it to indemnify Odin against all claims or liability in the proceeding. For the following reasons, we affirm in part, reverse in part and remand.
FACTS
On February 1, 1996, the plaintiff was a part-time employee of H & R Block, which had an office in the Pierre Bossier Mall in Bossier City, Louisiana. On that date, the Shreveport-Bossier City area experienced an ice storm. On the morning of the accident, plaintiff's eye clinic appointment at the Barksdale Air Force Base was canceled due to the expected weather conditions. Plaintiff called the LSU Medical Center, where she worked full-time, and was told that her office was closing and that she did not need to report to work. During the day, television and radio broadcasts advised the public about potential ice accumulation on the roads.
At the time, William McFadden was general manager of the mall under a contract with Odin. In response to the icy conditions, McFadden assigned a maintenance worker to apply rock salt to the sidewalk. Testimony indicated that the salt was primarily applied around the main mall entrances. At 2:00 p.m., Odin decided to close the mall early and distributed notices to all tenants, including H & R Block, that the mall would close at 5:00 p.m. due to the ice.
Plaintiff telephoned the H & R Block office at approximately 5:00 p.m. and was informed by her supervisor that the mall was closing. Plaintiff was told to use her own discretion, but that she could be useful at work to assist several customers who were already waiting inside the store when it closed. The plaintiff decided to go to work and arrived at the mall at approximately 5:30 p.m. She walked from the parking lot to the sidewalk adjacent to the movie theatre and entered the mall through a rear service door because the mall entrance was locked.
At approximately 7:30 p.m., plaintiff escorted a customer through the same service door and out to the parking lot. Plaintiff then started to return to the mall over the same area she had just crossed. She took several steps, slipped on a patch of ice and fell to the sidewalk, injuring her right arm and shoulder. She was treated at Bossier Medical Center.
Plaintiff filed a petition for damages against the defendants, Odin and its liability insurer, U.S. Fire Insurance Company, claiming that the mall was negligent in failing to maintain its sidewalks in a condition free from ice or to warn of the hazard. Plaintiff also filed suit against her employer, H & R Block, claiming that its intentional act caused her injury and thus the worker's compensation law did not bar her tort action under these facts.
Odin filed a cross-claim against its co-defendant, H & R Block, seeking indemnification pursuant to a provision in the lease of the premises. Odin filed separate motions for summary judgment as to plaintiff's demand and its cross-claim against H & R Block. After a hearing, the trial court denied Odin's motion regarding plaintiff's demand, but granted summary judgment in favor of Odi
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