Summary Judgment Against Seafarer In Heavy Lifting Case Reversed
APRIL FASOLD, Appellant v. DELAWARE RIVER & BAY AUTHORITY
No. 03-3624
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT
2004 U.S. App. LEXIS 26709
December 6, 2004, Argued
December 21, 2004, Filed
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiff, a supervisor for the food service crew on a passenger ferry, appealed from a judgment of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, granting summary judgment to defendant precluding the supervisor's pursuit of her claims under the Jones Act, 46 U.S.C.S. § 688 et seq., and general maritime law.
OVERVIEW: The supervisor supervised the food service crew on a passenger ferry traveling between Lewes, Delaware and Cape May, New Jersey. Among her responsibilities was keeping clean the kitchen and galley area. While cleaning the walk-in refrigerator located in the ferry's galley, the supervisor injured her back moving a keg of beer stored there. The supervisor claimed that the refrigerator was "filthy" and that, in order for her to do her job, the keg had to be moved so food and debris behind it could be picked up. The supervisor alleged that defendant failed to, inter alia, provide a safe place to work, properly stow the keg, provide the proper equipment to move the keg, and provide a sufficient number of able-bodied crew. The instant court found that the record demonstrated that there had been problems in the past with women having to lift heavy objects, the unsuitability of hand trucks and the size of the crew being insufficient to handle all the work aboard the ship. While a jury might determine that the supervisor's actions contributed to her injury and apportion liability accordingly, that did not foreclose her claims.
OUTCOME: The judgment was reversed.
