CBA Record

ment cases. Examples of what are referred to as “first-party” negligent entrustment cases from other jurisdictions are Hays v. Royer , 384 S.W.3d 330 (2012) and Martell v. Driscoll , 297 Kan. 524 (2013). In both instances, the plaintiffs were first-parties who were injured in accidents caused by their own negligence after being entrusted vehicles by the defendants, Hays v. Royer , 384 S.W.3d 330, 331 (2012) and Martell v. Driscoll , 297 Kan. 524, 528 (2013). Each court in those cases turned to the Restatement (Second) of Torts § 390 to determine that first-party negligent entrustment claims are viable under their state laws. This section is an illustration of a potential negligent entrustment scenario and reads: A rents his boat to B and C, who are both obviously so intoxicated as to make it likely that they will misman- age the boat so as to capsize it or to collide with other boats. B and C by their drunken mismanagement collide with the boat of D, upset- ting both boats. B, C, and D are drowned. A is subject to liability to the estates of B, C, and D under the death statute, although the estates of B and C may be also liable for the death of D. Restatement (Second) of Torts § 390 comment (c), Illustration 7 (1965). From this illustration the courts deter- mined that as long as a state’s contributory negligence laws did not already block the claim, an assertion of negligent entrust- ment is valid against an entrustor, Hays , 384 S.W.3d at 338 and Martell , 297 Kan. at 532. Once again, these are significant decisions that further expand the factual scenarios where negligent entrustment is applicable. Another example of the expanding trend occurring in courts includes expansion of what can be entrusted. Traditionally, property included in negligent entrustment cases has been limited to cars, various type of guns, or other dangerous items. How- ever, a recent case in Tennessee expanded on these items. In West v. East Tenn. Pioneer Oil Co. , 172 S.W.3d 545 (2005), the plain- tiff alleged that the defendant, a gas station, entrusted gasoline to a clearly intoxicated

individual, who was later involved in an automobile accident, West , 172 S.W.3d at 547 (2005). The plaintiffs asserted that when the gas station sold and assisted the intoxicated driver with pumping gas it entrusted himwith it and that it was clearly foreseeable that the gasoline would be used in a manner that would place others in danger. The Tennessee Supreme Court agreed with this claim and reversed the lower courts’ decisions to grant summary judg- ment, explaining that the plaintiffs estab- lished a prima facie case for negligent entrustment. This, like the previous cases, is an expansion on property that is typically included in negligent entrustment cases. This expansion, once again, further high- lights the pro-plaintiff shift in negligent entrustment decisions. Overall, when viewed as a whole, these cases clearly sig- nify a definite trend. This means that more courts are willing to, and should continue to be willing to, allow plaintiffs injured by negligently entrusted property to file against the entrustor of that property.

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Conclusion Liability for negligent entrustment is expanding as courts face more difficult entrustment scenarios and lawyers seek to apply the law to those cases. The public is served well by this expansion as justice is done for these victims. G. Grant Dixon III is the founder of the personal injury and worker’s compensation law firm, Dixon Law Office, with offices in LaGrange, Chicago and Oakbrook Terrace. Grant would like to thank Ryan Liss for his extensive research and writing contributions to this article.

L AWY E R S ’ A S S I S TA N C E P R O G R A M

ANNUAL DINNER NOVEMBER 3 RD JUDGE OF THE YEAR Judge Robert J. Anderson, 18th Judicial Circuit Court VOLUNTEERS OF THE YEAR Robert Kelleher, Michelle Owen, Ruta Stropus M I CHAEL J . HOWLETT JR . AWARD Illinois Bar Foundation EXECUT I VE D I RECTOR ’ S AWARD Michael Cortina

For more information contact LAP at 312-726-6607 or visit www.illinoislap.org.

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