Buzzard v. Roadrunner Trucking, Inc.

• Decision Date: 04 June 1992
• Docket Number: No. 91-5628,91-5628
• Citation: 966 F.2d 777
• Parties: , Prod.Liab.Rep. (CCH) P 13,308 Bruce W. BUZZARD, Administrator of the Estate of Deborah S. Buzzard, Bruce W. Buzzard, individually, and Bruce W. Buzzard, as parent and natural guardian of Lucas Buzzard, a minor v. ROADRUNNER TRUCKING, INC.; Roy L. Gerst; Freuhauf Trailer Operations, a division of Terex Trailer Corporations. FREUHAUF TRAILER OPERATIONS; Roadrunner Trucking, Inc.; and Roy L. Gerst, Cross-Claimants, v. ROADRUNNER TRUCKING, INC. and Roy L. Gerst, Cross-Defendants, Bruce W. Buzzard, Appellant.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Third Circuit

Page 777

966 F.2d 777

60 USLW 2788, Prod.Liab.Rep. (CCH) P 13,308

Bruce W. BUZZARD, Administrator of the Estate of Deborah S.

Buzzard, Bruce W. Buzzard, individually, and Bruce

W. Buzzard, as parent and natural guardian of Lucas Buzzard, a minor v. ROADRUNNER TRUCKING, INC.; Roy L. Gerst; Freuhauf Trailer

Operations, a division of Terex Trailer Corporations.

FREUHAUF TRAILER OPERATIONS; Roadrunner Trucking, Inc.; and Roy L. Gerst, Cross-Claimants, v. ROADRUNNER TRUCKING, INC. and Roy L. Gerst, Cross-Defendants, Bruce W. Buzzard, Appellant.

No. 91-5628.

United States Court of Appeals Third Circuit.

Argued Jan. 28, 1992.

Decided June 4, 1992.

George W. Westervelt, Jr. (Argued), Stroudsburg, Pa., for appellant.

Richard G. Fine, Fine, Wyatt & Carey, Scranton, Pa., for appellees Roadrunner Trucking, Inc. and Roy L. Gerst.

Morton F. Daller (Argued), Barbara H. Zurzolo, Rawle & Henderson, Philadelphia, Pa., for appellee Fruehauf Trailer Operations.

Before MANSMANN, HUTCHINSON and ROSENN, Circuit Judges.

OPINION OF THE COURT

HUTCHINSON, Circuit Judge.

Bruce W. Buzzard (Buzzard) appeals from an interlocutory order of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania granting summary judgment to Fruehauf Trailer Operations, a division of Terex Trailer Corporation (Fruehauf), on Buzzard's negligence and product liability claims against it. The district court concluded that Buzzard's state common law tort claims were pre-empted by the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (Safety Act or Act), 15 U.S.C.A. §§ 1381-1431 (West 1982 & Supp.1991) and Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 (Standard 108) promulgated thereunder, see 49 C.F.R. § 571.108 (1989). ¹

We will reverse and remand. Standard 108 relates to illumination, i.e., required lighting equipment. Unlike Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208 (Standard 208) which relates to passive restraints, see 49 C.F.R. § 571.208 (1991), the standard we considered in Pokorny v. Ford Motor Co., 902 F.2d 1116 (3d Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 111 S.Ct. 147, 112 L.Ed.2d 113 (1990), Standard 108 does not give manufacturers seeking shelter from the storm of modern product liability lawsuits a choice among several safe harbors. Neither Buzzard's strict liability claim for defective design nor his alternate claim for negligent design make it impossible to comply with both state and federal law. His claims do not actually conflict with federal law nor do they frustrate the primary purpose or objective of the Safety Act, highway safety. Instead, Buzzard's action furthers that purpose. Therefore, Standard 108 does not pre-empt Buzzard's state common law tort action.

I.

On December 14, 1990, Buzzard filed this survival and wrongful death action in the district court, on behalf of himself, his minor son, Lucas Buzzard, and his deceased wife's estate against Fruehauf, Roadrunner Trucking, Inc. (Roadrunner) and Roy L. Gerst (Gerst). The complaint alleged Fruehauf ² was either strictly liable as the manufacturer of an unreasonably dangerous product expected to reach consumers, or alternately for negligently designing a flatbed trailer without lighting or reflective devices adequate to warn other motorists of the trailer's size, location and movement. Buzzard sought in excess of fifty thousand ($50,000) dollars in damages, plus interest and costs.

After all defendants had filed answers to the complaint and cross-claims, Fruehauf filed a motion for summary judgment. Fruehauf argued it was entitled to judgment as a matter of law because Buzzard's claims were pre-empted by federal law. The district court concluded that federal law did pre-empt Buzzard's claims against Fruehauf. Accordingly, it issued an order granting Fruehauf's motion for summary judgment and entered judgment for Fruehauf and against Buzzard. Buzzard timely appealed from that order. Thereafter, the district court certified the order for appeal pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 54(b).

II.

The facts material to Fruehauf's motion are not in dispute. Buzzard's action arose out of a fatal accident on the night of January 13, 1989 involving his wife, Deborah S. Buzzard, and a tractor pulling a flatbed trailer. Gerst was driving the tractor-trailer. It was owned by his employer, Roadrunner. Mrs. Buzzard had been driving her 1987 Mazda DX south on Pennsylvania Route 209, an unlit four lane highway running in a north-south direction, towards the intersection of Route 209 and Beaver Valley Road, in Hamilton Township, Monroe County, Pennsylvania. At the same time, Gerst was operating a 1987 PBT 400 highway tractor with an attached flatbed trailer. Fruehauf had designed and manufactured the flatbed trailer and sold it to Roadrunner. Buzzard does not contend that the lighting and reflective devices on the trailer failed to comply with the illumination standards set by the Safety Act and Standard 108. The accident occurred when Gerst, apparently attempting to make a "K" turn, backed the tractor-trailer out of Beaver Valley Road and onto Route 209, blocking the entire right southbound lane and part of the left southbound lane of Route 209. Mrs. Buzzard's vehicle collided violently with the right side of the flatbed trailer. She eventually died from the injuries she suffered.

III.

The district court had subject matter jurisdiction over this diversity action pursuant to 28 U.S.C.A. § 1332(a) (West Supp.1991). Generally, an order granting summary judgment as to one of several defendants is not appealable. See Jackson v. Hart, 435 F.2d 1293, 1294 (3d Cir.1970). On January 16, 1992, however, the district court amended its order to certify it for immediate appeal under Rule 54(b). Although the appeal was prematurely taken from a non-appealable interlocutory order, we may consider it as if taken from the district court's subsequent Rule 54(b) certification provided such consideration does not prejudice Fruehauf. See Richerson v. Jones, 551 F.2d 918, 922 (3d Cir.1977). No prejudice exists here and indeed Fruehauf does not oppose Buzzard's assertion of appellate jurisdiction. Therefore, we have decided to exercise the appellate jurisdiction 28 U.S.C.A. § 1291 (West Supp.1991) gives us over Buzzard's appeal from the order the district court has certified pursuant to Rule 54(b).

We exercise plenary review since this appeal involves the resolution of a pure question of law which arose on a motion for summary judgment below. International Union, UMW v. Racho Trucking Co., 897 F.2d 1248, 1252 (3d Cir.1990).

IV.

The pre-emption doctrine, rooted in the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution, U.S. Const., art. VI, cl. 2, requires conflicts between federal and state law to be resolved in favor of federal law. Fidelity Fed. Sav. & Loan Ass'n v. De La Cuesta, 458 U.S. 141, 152-53, 102 S.Ct. 3014, 3022, 73 L.Ed.2d 664 (1982). Federal regulations, as well as federal statutes, can trigger pre-emption. Hillsborough County, Fla. v. Automated Medical Lab., Inc., 471 U.S. 707, 713, 105 S.Ct. 2371, 2375, 85 L.Ed.2d 714 (1985); De La Cuesta, 458 U.S. at 153, 102 S.Ct. at 3022. Liability in tort imposed under state common law principles is subject to pre-emption under the Supremacy Clause whenever those common law principles conflict with federal statutory or regulatory law. See San Diego Bldg. Trades Council v. Garmon, 359 U.S. 236, 247, 79 S.Ct. 773, 780-81, 3 L.Ed.2d 775 (1959); Cipollone v. Liggett Group, Inc., 789 F.2d 181, 186-87 (3d Cir.1986).

Pursuant to the pre-emption doctrine, federal law supersedes state law in three general situations. We explained them in Pokorny. There we said:

In Schneidewind v. ANR Pipeline Co., 485 U.S. 293 [108 S.Ct. 1145, 99 L.Ed.2d 316] (1988), the Supreme Court recognized that federal pre-emption of state law can occur in three types of situations: where Congress explicitly pre-empts state law, where pre-emption is implied because Congress has occupied the entire field and where pre-emption is implied because there is an actual conflict between federal and state law.

A pre-emption question requires an examination of congressional intent. Of course, Congress explicitly may define the extent to which its enactments pre-empt state law. In the absence of explicit statutory language, however, Congress implicitly may indicate an intent to occupy a given field to the exclusion of state law. Such a purpose properly may be inferred where the pervasiveness of the federal regulation precludes supplementation by the States, where the federal interest in the field is sufficiently dominant, or where "the object sought to be obtained by the federal law and the character of the obligations imposed by it ... reveal the same purposes." Finally, even where Congress has not entirely displaced state regulation in a particular field, state law is pre-empted when it actually conflicts with federal law. Such a conflict will be found " 'when it is impossible to comply with both state and federal law, or where the state law stands as an obstacle to the accomplishment of the full purposes and objectives of Congress.' "

Pokorny, 902 F.2d at 1120 (quoting Schneidewind, 485 U.S. at 299-300, 108 S.Ct. at 1150-51 (citations omitted)).

The pre-emption doctrine is limited by a presumption that Congress did not intend to displace state law. See Maryland v. Louisiana, 451 U.S. 725, 746, 101 S.Ct. 2114, 2128, 68 L.Ed.2d 576 (1981); Pokorny, 902 F.2d at 1122; Cipollone, 789 F.2d at 185. The burden of demonstrating pre-emption rests with the defendant. See Silkwood v. Kerr-McGee, Corp., 464 U.S. 238, 255, 104 S.Ct. 615, 625, 78 L.Ed.2d 443 (1984).

Fruehauf asserts that it is entitled to summary judgment because Buzzard's state common law tort action is pre-empted by the Safety Act and Standard 108 promulgated thereunder. ³ In the Safety Act, Congress does not explicitly set forth an intent to pre-empt state common law tort actions regarding automobile safety. The Safety Act has...