FACT ISSUE OF WHETHER VESSEL WAS IN NAVIGATION REQUIRED REVERSAL OF SUMMARY JUDGEMENT FOR EMPLOYER THAT JONES ACT AND GENERAL MARITIME LAW DID NOT APPLY
DENISE DAVIS, Appellant v. THE MISSOURI GAMING COMPANY d/b/aARGOSY RIVERSIDE CASINO, Respondent
WD 58768
COURT OF APPEALS OF MISSOURI, WESTERN DISTRICT
2001 Mo. App. LEXIS 799
May 15, 2001, Filed
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiff appealed a decision of the Circuit Court of Platte County (Missouri) granting summary judgment for defendant in an action brought pursuant to 46 U.S.C.S. § 688 (Supp. 2000) of the Jones Act, and general maritime law.
OVERVIEW: Plaintiff employee sued defendant riverboat casino employer pursuant to 46 U.S.C.S. § 688 (Supp. 2000) of the Jones Act (Act), and general maritime law, seeking to recover for personal injuries that she sustained while she participated in a United States Coast Guard fire drill on board defendant's casino. The trial court granted summary judgment for defendant, concluding that the Act did not apply and that state workers' compensation law provided plaintiff's exclusive remedy. Plaintiff appealed, and the appellate court reversed and remanded for further proceedings. As to the issue of whether plaintiff qualified for jurisdiction under the Act, the critical inquiry in this case was whether defendant's casino constituted a "vessel in navigation" at the time that plaintiff was injured. The issue of whether the structure was such a "vessel in navigation" was a fact-intensive inquiry. Disputed issues of material fact existed as to that issue, such that the issue should have been submitted to a jury.
OUTCOME:The trial court's grant of summary judgment for defendant was reversed and the case was remanded for further proceedings. Disputed fact issues existed as to whether defendant's casino was a "vessel in navigation" at the time of plaintiff employee's injury.
