Jones v. Macon Soils, Inc.
Jones v. Macon Soils, Inc.
Opinion of the Court
Acting in various capacities, Vanessa Jones sued Macon Soils, Inc. in tort for her husband’s injuries and death arising out of his fall while working for his employer, Macon Water Authority. She appeals the trial court’s entry of summary judgment against her on all claims. She argues that Macon Soils was a joint owner of the equipment that caused the accident or that Macon Soils was at least engaged in a joint enterprise or was acting in concert with Macon Water Authority so as to be jointly liable for the injuries. We hold that the undisputed evidence showed that Macon Soils had no ownership interest in the equipment and that to the extent it was acting in concert or in a joint enterprise with Macon Water Authority, the Workers’ Compensation Act barred this suit. Accordingly, we affirm.
“Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56 (c).” Matjoulis v. Integon Gen. Ins. Corp.
So construed, the evidence shows that Jones’s husband worked for Macon Water Authority on a project that involved the clearing of sand from a pump station and that required workers to descend 65 feet into the affected area. Macon Water Authority lowered its employees into the area in a large drum attached to a steel cable that was spooling from a boom truck owned by Macon Water Authority. Jones’s husband fell to his death while being lowered in the drum. Jones and her children recovered workers’ compensation benefits from Macon Water Authority.
Macon Soils, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Macon Water Authority, removed and disposed of certain byproducts from Macon Water Authority’s operations, for which it received compensation from
In February 2003, Macon Soils moved for summary judgment, submitting evidence that it had nothing to do with the boom truck, that the boom truck was owned exclusively by Macon Water Authority, and that the joint insurance policy did not purport to vest any ownership of the truck in Macon Soils. Jones responded by amending her complaint to allege that with regard to the project, Macon Soils was either acting in a joint enterprise or in concert with Macon Water Authority and was, therefore, liable as an agent of Macon Water Authority. She asked the court to allow her an opportunity to conduct discovery in this area. A month later in April 2003, she sent out written discovery requests (interrogatories and requests for production of documents) concerning this “joint enterprise/acting in concert” issue. Even though the court waited to rule on the summary judgment motion until June 23, 2003, Jones submitted no further discovery or evidence on the issue. In its ruling, the court entered summary judgment against Jones on all issues excepting the issue of whether Macon Soils had an ownership interest in the boom truck at the time of the accident.
The parties submitted further evidence on the ownership issue, including the actual insurance policy and deposition testimony. In October 2003, the court granted Macon Soils summary judgment as to all issues, including the ownership issue. Jones appeals this order, enumerating four errors: (1) the court erred in not allowing Jones the opportunity to conduct discovery regarding the “j oint enterprise/acting in concert” issue; (2) the court erred in granting summary judgment on the issue of whether Macon Soils and Macon Water Authority were engaged in a joint enterprise; (3) the court erred in granting summary judgment on the issue of whether Macon Soils and Macon Water Authority were acting in concert; and (4) the court erred in granting summary judgment on the issue of whether Macon Soils had an insurable and/or ownership interest in the boom truck at the time of the accident.
1. Jones first contends that the court erred in not allowing her the opportunity to conduct discovery regarding the “joint enterprise/acting in concert” issue. The record belies this contention. The court waited four months to rule on the summary judgment motion, during which time Jones conducted only limited written discovery and submitted no further evidence. Her choices not to conduct further discovery and
2. The second and third enumerations contend that the court erred in granting Macon Soils summary judgment on the issues of whether Macon Soils and Macon Water Authority were engaged in a joint enterprise or were acting in concert. But even were we to assume the two entities were so intertwined as alleged by Jones, then the Workers’ Compensation Act would bar any claim against Macon Soils as a joint actor with Macon Water Authority.
Boatman v. George Hyman Constr. Co.
Thus, Jones’s allegations of engaging in a joint enterprise and of acting in concert prove too much. To the extent these allegations are accurate, the exclusive remedy of the Workers’ Compensation Act would preclude any tort suit against Macon Soils as a member of a joint enterprise with Macon Water Authority (the undisputed employer of the decedent). The trial court did not err in granting Macon Soils summary judgment on these issues.
3. Jones’s final enumeration claims that a joint insurance policy naming both Macon Soils and Macon Water Authority as insureds and then listing the various vehicles owned by each of these entities as property insured under the policy created liability on the part of Macon Soils for injuries caused by Macon Water Authority’s vehicles listed in the policy. This argument is not well-founded.
The undisputed evidence, including the written title to the vehicle, shows that Macon Water Authority owned the boom truck at
Judgment affirmed.
Matjoulis v. Integon Gen. Ins. Corp., 226 Ga. App. 459 (1) (486 SE2d 684) (1997).
Boatman v. George Hyman Constr. Co., 157 Ga. App. 120, 123 (276 SE2d 272) (1981).
Burgett v. Thamer Constr., 165 Ga. App. 404, 405 (1) (300 SE2d 211) (1983).
Seckinger & Co. v. Foreman, 252 Ga. 540, 541 (2) (314 SE2d 891) (1984).
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.