Mike Guss Obtains Summary Disposition In Trucking Accident Claim

Alice Porter-Ives & Gary Ives v H & M Construction, et. al., Crawford County Circuit Court. While in the process of unstrapping cargo from the trailer of her commercial flatbed truck at a construction site, a large duct pipe rolled off the load and struck the plaintiff. Plaintiff filed suit against the general contractor of the project, H & M Construction, asserting that H & M’s Safety Manual required an inspection of the shipment prior to directing the plaintiff to unstrap her load, and had an inspection occurred, the absence of “blocking” would have been discovered. After discovery, we filed a motion for summary disposition on behalf of H & M, arguing that internal policies and procedures cannot be used to establish a legal duty in a negligence claim and there is no basis, beyond speculation and conjecture, to assert that H & M’s conduct fell short of the requisite standard of care. After reviewing the briefs and hearing oral argument, the court agreed with our position, granting summary disposition and dismissing all claims made by plaintiff against our client.