Benoit v. City of Lake Charles7/20/2005
Court composed of Ulysses Gene Thibodeaux, Chief Judge, John D. Saunders, Marc T. Amy, Michael G. Sullivan, and Elizabeth A. Pickett, Judges.
WRIT GRANTED IN PART AND MADE PEREMPTORY; WRIT DENIED IN PART; REMANDED.
Thibodeaux, C.J., dissents in part and assigns written reasons.
Saunders, J., concurs in part, dissents in part, and assigns reasons.
The plaintiff seeks damages related to a fall occurring at a ballpark owned by the City of Lake Charles. The defendants filed a motion for summary judgment, asserting immunity pursuant to La.R.S. 9:2795. The trial court denied the motion. The defendants filed the instant writ application. For the following reasons, we grant in part, deny in part and remand for further proceedings.
Factual and Procedural Background
The plaintiff, Shelly Benoit, alleges that she fractured her ankle after she stepped into a depressed portion of the ground at a park and ballfield owned by the City of Lake Charles. Mrs. Benoit and her family were visiting the park on that day to attend a baseball tournament in which her son was participating. The City of Lake Charles and the United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), the organization allegedly hosting and organizing the tournament, were named as defendants as was USSSA's insurer, United National Insurance Company.
The defendants filed a motion for summary judgment, asserting the applicability of recreational immunity under La.R.S. 9:2795. The motion was denied by the trial court.
Discussion
The defendants question the trial court's determination that genuine issues of material fact remain with regard to who was responsible for creating the depressed area on the park property. The defendants contend that such a determination is irrelevant as La.R.S. 9:2795 does not include the condition's origin as a factor in determining the applicability of the recreational immunity statute. The plaintiff contends that La.R.S. 9:2795 is inapplicable in the present case as the injury did not occur in a "true outdoors" setting, but instead, occurred on a ballfield in a developed city park.
On appeal, a trial court's ruling on a motion for summary judgment is reviewed pursuant to the de novo standard of review. Champagne v. Ward, 03-3211 (La. 1/19/05), 893 So.2d 773. Accordingly, we consider the standard set forth in La.Code Civ.P. art. 966. Subsection B of that provision requires that summary judgment shall be rendered "if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to material fact, and that mover is entitled to judgment as a matter of law."
The immunity provision in this case is La.R.S. 9:2795, which provides: ยง 2795. Limitation of liability of landowner of property used for recreational purposes; property owned by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries; parks owned by public entities
A. As used in this Section:
(1) "Land" means urban or rural land, roads, water, watercourses, private ways or buildings, structures, and machinery or equipment when attached to the realty.
(2) "Owner" means the possessor of a fee interest, a tenant, lessee, occupant or person in control of the premises.
(3) "Recreational purposes" includes but is not limited to any of the following, or any combination thereof: hunting, fishing, trapping, swimming, boating, camping, picnicking, hiking, horseback riding, bicycle riding, motorized, or non-motorized vehicle operation for recreation purposes, nature study, water skiing, ice skating, roller skating, rolle
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