Adelman v. Hub City Los Angeles Terminal, Inc.

• Decision Date: 07 July 1994
• Docket Number: No. CV-93-N-0942-S.,CV-93-N-0942-S.
• Citation: 856 F. Supp. 1544
• Parties: Jeff ADELMAN d/b/a Jeff Adelman Sales & Service, Plaintiff, v. HUB CITY LOS ANGELES TERMINAL, INC., et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Northern District of Alabama

856 F. Supp. 1544

Jeff ADELMAN d/b/a Jeff Adelman Sales & Service, Plaintiff, v. HUB CITY LOS ANGELES TERMINAL, INC., et al., Defendants.

No. CV-93-N-0942-S.

United States District Court, N.D. Alabama, Southern Division.

July 7, 1994.

Robert R. Riley, Jr., Hare Wynn Newell & Newton, Birmingham, AL, for Jeff Adelman.

John Edward Goodman, Bradley Arant Rose & White, Birmingham, AL, for Hub City Los Angeles Terminal, Inc.

Michael W. Ray, Charles E. Sharp, Sadler Sullivan Herring & Sharp, Birmingham, AL, for Burlington Northern R. Co. and Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe.

Richard W. Lewis, London Yancey Elliott & Burgess, Birmingham, AL, for Star Freight.

Robert E. Parsons, Parsons Lee & Juliano, Birmingham, AL, for DCC Inc.

MEMORANDUM OF OPINION

(Corrected)

EDWIN L. NELSON, District Judge.

This case is presently pending before the court on motions for summary judgment filed by defendants Star Freight, Inc.; Hub City Los Angeles Terminal, Inc. ("Hub City"); and Burlington Northern Railroad Company ("Burlington Northern"). The motions were submitted at the motion docket of April 21, 1994.

I. Introduction.

In the original complaint, Jeff Adelman alleged that some of his goods were damaged, lost, or stolen during the transportation of those goods from California to South Carolina. He alleged:

In the course of said goods being transported from Los Angeles to South Carolina, the tractor trailer truck carrying said goods came to Jefferson County, Alabama.¹ Said truck stopped in Jefferson County and was required to unload many of the items which had been loaded into the trailer. Hub City Los Angeles Terminal, Inc. instructed Burlington Northern to break the seal of the trailer and unload the additional weight so it could continue to be transported. Burlington Northern was to then deliver said goods to Star Freight. Star Freight was to deliver said goods to Plaintiff.

Plaintiff avers that Hub City negligently and/or wantonly overloaded said tractor trailer which was used to transport said goods to Plaintiff; but for the negligence of Hub City it would not have been necessary to break the seal of the tractor trailer, unload said goods, and such goods would not have been lost. Furthermore, Plaintiff alleges the overloading by Hub City was a breach of contract.

Plaintiff further avers that Burlington Northern negligently and/or wantonly supervised the loading and unloading of said goods resulting in many of the said goods being lost.

(Complaint, filed April 2, 1993, ¶¶ 5-7)

On June 25, 1993, Adelman amended his complaint to add Star Freight as a defendant. He then filed a second amended complaint alleging that Star Freight "negligently and/or wantonly loaded, unloaded, and/or transported Plaintiff's goods resulting in many of the said goods being lost; but for the negligence of Defendant Star Freight, said goods would not have been damaged or lost." (Amended Complaint (Second), filed Sept. 2, 1993, ¶ 9) In his sixth amended complaint, the plaintiff asserted a claim "based on the Carmack Amendment §§ 11707, 10703, 10505 and any other appropriate sections of said Amendment which became relevant due to facts learned through additional discovery." (Amended Complaint (Sixth), filed March 14, 1994, ¶ 16).

II. Summary Judgment Standard.

Under Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c), summary judgment is proper "if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." See Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2552, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). The party asking for summary judgment "always bears the initial responsibility of informing the district court of the basis for its motion, and identifying those portions of the `pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any,' which it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact." Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2552-53. The movant can meet this burden by presenting evidence showing there is no dispute of material fact, or by showing the nonmoving party has failed to present evidence in support of some element of his case on which he bears the ultimate burden of proof. Id. at 322-23, 106 S.Ct. at 2552-53; see Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a) and (b). There is no requirement, however, "that the moving party support its motion with affidavits or other similar materials negating the opponent's claim." Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2553.

Once the moving party has met his burden, Rule 56(e) "requires the nonmoving party to go beyond the pleadings and by her own affidavits, or by the `depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions of file,' designate `specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial.'" Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. at 2553. The nonmoving party need not present evidence in a form necessary for admission at trial, however she may not merely rest on her pleadings. Id. "The plain language of Rule 56(c) mandates the entry of summary judgment, after adequate time for discovery and upon motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party's case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial." Id. at 322, 106 S.Ct. at 2552.

After a properly made motion has been properly responded to, the court must grant summary judgment if there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). The substantive law will identify which facts are material and which are irrelevant. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2510, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). A dispute is genuine "if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party." Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct. at 2510. "The judge's function is not himself to weigh the evidence and determine the truth of the matter but to determine whether there is a genuine issue for trial." Id. at 249, 106 S.Ct. at 2511. His guide is the same standard necessary to direct a verdict: "whether the evidence presents a sufficient disagreement to require submission to a jury or whether it is so onesided that one party must prevail as a matter of law." Id. at 251-52, 106 S.Ct. at 2512; see also Bill Johnson's Restaurants, Inc. v. NLRB, 461 U.S. 731, 745 n. 11, 103 S.Ct. 2161, 2171, 76 L.Ed.2d 277 (1983). However, the nonmoving party "must do more than show that there is some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts". Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 1356, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). If the evidence is merely colorable, or is not significantly probative, summary judgment may be granted. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 249, 106 S.Ct. at 2510-11 (citations omitted); accord Spence v. Zimmerman, 873 F.2d 256 (11th Cir.1989). Furthermore, the court must "view the evidence presented through the prism of the substantive evidentiary burden," so there must be sufficient evidence on which the jury could reasonably find for the plaintiff. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 254, 106 S.Ct. at 2513; Cottle v. Storer Communication, Inc., 849 F.2d 570, 575 (11th Cir.1988). Nevertheless, credibility determinations, the weighing of evidence, and the drawing of inferences from the facts are the function of the jury, and therefore the evidence of the nonmovant is to be believed and all justifiable inferences are to be drawn in his favor. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. at 2513-14. The nonmovant need not be given the benefit of every inference but only of every reasonable inference. Brown v. City of Clewiston, 848 F.2d 1534, 1540 n. 12 (11th Cir.1988).

III. Star Freight.

At the motion docket, conducted in open court, counsel for the plaintiff conceded that Star Freight's motion is due to be granted and Star Freight is due to be dismissed.

IV. Hub City.

A. Introduction.

The plaintiff has alleged: (1) that Hub City instructed Burlington Northern to break the seal on the container carrying his goods and unload some of the goods, (Complaint, ¶ 5); (2) that Hub City negligently and/or wantonly overloaded the container in California, (Complaint, ¶ 6); and (3) that Hub City is liable pursuant to the Carmack Amendment, 49 U.S.C. §§ 11707, 10703, 10505 and any other appropriate sections of said Amendment." (Amended Complaint (Sixth), filed March 14, 1994, ¶ 16) Hub City filed its motion for summary judgment contending it was entitled to judgment as a matter of law because it neither instructed Burlington Northern to break the seal nor loaded the plaintiff's goods.

B. Discussion.

1. Carmack Amendment claim.

The Carmack Amendment provides:

A common carrier providing transportation or service subject to the jurisdiction of the Interstate Commerce Commission under subchapter I, II, or IV of chapter 105 of this title and a freight forwarder shall issue a receipt or bill of lading for property it receives for transportation under this subtitle. That carrier or freight forwarder and any other common carrier that delivers the property and is providing transportation or service subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission under subchapter I, II, or IV are liable to the person entitled to recover under the receipt or bill of lading. The liability imposed under this paragraph is for the actual loss or injury to the property caused by (1) the receiving carrier, (2) the delivering carrier, or (3) another carrier over whose line or route the property is transported....

49 U.S.C. § 11707(a)(1). "A shipper establishes a prima facie case of a carrier's negligence under the Carmack Amendment by evincing proof by a preponderance of the evidence that the goods `1) were delivered to the carrier in good condition, 2) arrived in...