C. R. Anthony Co. v. Williams

• Decision Date: 19 September 1939
• Docket Number: Case Number: 28516
• Parties: C. R. ANTHONY CO. v. WILLIAMS
• Court: Oklahoma Supreme Court

1939 OK 316

94 P.2d 836

185 Okla. 564

C. R. ANTHONY CO. v. WILLIAMS

Case Number: 28516

Supreme Court of Oklahoma

Decided: September 19, 1939

Syllabus

¶0 1. NEGLIGENCE--"Invitee" and "Licensee" Distinguished.

An invitation to use the premises of another is inferred, where there is a common interest or mutual advantage, while a license is inferred where the object is the mere pleasure or benefit of the person using ,them. Julian v. Sinclair Oil & Gas Co., 168 Okla. 192, 32 P.2d 31.

2. SAME--Care Due Person Invited or Induced to Come Upon Premises.

Where a person invites or induces, expressly or by implication, another to come upon his premises, whether for business or any other purpose, it is his duty to be reasonably sure that he is not inviting him into danger, and he must use ordinary care and prudence not to injure him.

3. NEGLIGENCE--Contributory Negligence as Question for Jury.

Article 23, sec. 6, of the Constitution of Oklahoma is not merely declaratory of the common law, but requires that the defense of contributory negligence as to questions of fact, in all cases whatsoever, shall at all times be left to the jury, and the finding of the jury upon this defense is conclusive upon the court.

Appeal from District Court, Beckham County; Henry W. Hoel, Assigned Judge.

Action by Ann Williams against the C. R. Anthony Company for damages for the death of her husband, Dan Williams. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendant appeals. Affirmed.

Clayton B. Pierce and Truman B. Rucker, for plaintiff in error.

E. H. Gipson, H. C. Ivester, and Morgan & Morgan, for defendant in error.

DANNER, J.

¶1 The plaintiff in error, defendant below, appeals from a judgment for $4,000 based on a jury verdict in favor of the defendant in error in an action for damages for the death of her husband. Herein the parties will be referred to as plaintiff and defendant.

¶2 A summary of the allegations in plaintiff's petition is succinctly stated in defendant's brief, as follows:

"It was alleged that the plaintiff was the widow of one Dan Williams, a resident of Texas, the defendant a resident of Oklahoma, and had its place of business on the east side of Main street in the city of Elk City, the building facing west; that the main entrance and the main part of the store was on the west side of the building; that the building was 150 feet long; that at the rear of the building there was a storeroom which was separated from the main part of the store by a partition which had an opening about six feet in width, which was unobstructed except for a heavy drop curtain, that this partition was about 100 feet from the front or the west wall of the store. That in the southeast corner of the storage room there was a small room used as a toilet by the employees of the defendant and its customers; that the only entrance to the toilet was through a door on the north side of the same which opened to the cast ,and it was a custom for the door to the toilet to be kept closed; that there was a stairway leading from the ground floor of the building to the basement, located near the south wall of the storage room; that the steps and the basement floor were made of concrete; that the only obstruction to the entrance to the basement was a door, attached to the floor, at or near the south wall to the building, which opened up and was attached to the south wall; that there was no bannister, wall or other obstruction to the basement stairs nor sign or warning of the location of the stairs; that the storage room had no windows and was dark at all times except when lighted by electric lights and that the basement likewise was dark except when lit by electric lights.

"Then, on the 15th day of October, 1935, the deceased was a representative of the Globe Tailoring Company, and, at the invitation of the defendant, visited the store for the purpose of assisting the defendant in securing orders for men clothes sold by the Globe Tailoring Company, all for the financial benefit of the defendant; that shortly after his arrival on the morning of said day, the deceased had occasion to use the toilet and passed from the sales room through the opening in the partition to the storage room and in the direction of the toilet, at

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