Swart v. Justh

U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
Swart v. Justh, 24 App. D.C. 596 (D.C. Cir. 1905)
1905 U.S. App. LEXIS 5391

Swart v. Justh

Opinion of the Court

Mr. Chief Justice Shepard

delivered the opinion of the Court:

The evidence recited does not warrant an inference that Lea-man’s contract to put in the skylight covered also the removal of the debris occasioned by its construction. Nor does it appear therefrom that the defendant was under any obligation to his tenant, or to anyone else, to remove from the roof of the building the old material left there after the completion of the work contracted for. Hence no question arose as to the liability of defendant, as the owner of the building, for injuries resulting directly from acts which the contractor was authorized or required to do, as in St. Paul Water Co. v. Ware, 16 Wall. 566, 576, 21 L. ed. 485, 488, and other like cases.

But two material issues were presented by the evidence. The *600first was, whether, after the completion of his contract for the construction of the skylight, Leaman had undertaken the removal of the old material at the request, or in obedience to the directions, of the defendant. If so, the jury were correctly charged that he was acting as the agent or employee of the defendant in such manner as to render the latter liable for his negligent performance, whether or not he had himself been present and in actual direction of the work.

The second was whether, Teaman’s contract having been completely performed, he became the owner of the old material by gift of the defendant, and in its removal acted for himself alone without any direction from the defendant. If they should so find from the evidence, then the jury were properly instructed that the defendant would not be liable for Teaman’s negligence in removing his own property in his own way.

Had the gift to Teaman been coupled with the requirement of removal, then defendant might have been liable for his acts. Burke v. Shaw, 59 Miss. 443, 42 Am. Rep. 370. But there is nothing in the evidence warranting the application of the principle of that case, by way of instruction to the jury, and there is no occasion either to affirm or deny it.

Having found no error in the charge of the court, the judgment must be affirmed with costs; and it is so ordered.

Affirmed.

Reference

Full Case Name
SWART v. JUSTH
Status
Published
Syllabus
Negligence; Master and Servant; Instructions to Jury. 1. Where, in an action against the owner of a building to recover damages for personal injuries received by the plaintiff by having been struck by old materials thrown from the roof of the building by a contractor with the owner for repairs, after the completion of the contract, one of the issues is whether the contractor had undertaken the removal of the old materials at the request, or by direction, of the owner,— a charge to the jury is correct which tells them that, if so, then the contractor was acting as the agent or employee of the defendant in such manner as to render the defendant liable for his negligent performance, whether he himself was present and in actual direction of the work, or not. 2. And an instruction in such a case, in the charge to the jury, is also correct, which is to the eft'eet that, if the contract for repairing had been completely performed, and the contractor had become the owner of the old material by gift of the owner of the building, and in its removal acted for himself alone without any direction from the defendant, then the. defendant would not be liable for the contractor’s negligence in removing his own property in his own way.