Hamlin v. Transcon Lines, s. 83-221

• Citation: 697 P.2d 606
• Decision Date: 01 April 1985
• Docket Number: Nos. 83-221,83-222,s. 83-221
• Parties: Marilyn A. HAMLIN, individually and as Administratrix of the Estate of Calvin Harold Hamlin, deceased, Appellant (Plaintiff), v. TRANSCON LINES; Russel N. Holmes; Raymond E. Befus, in his capacity as Administrator of the Estate of Gerald A. Befus, deceased; and the State of Wyoming, Appellees (Defendants). Raymond E. Befus, in his capacity as Administrator of the Estate of Gerald A. Befus, deceased, Appellant (Defendant), v. TRANSCON LINES; Russel N. Holmes; the State of Wyoming, Appellees (Defendants), v. Marilyn A. HAMLIN, individually and as Administratrix of the Estate of Calvin Harold Hamlin, deceased, Appellee (Plaintiff).
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Wyoming

Page 606

697 P.2d 606

Marilyn A. HAMLIN, individually and as Administratrix of the Estate of Calvin Harold Hamlin, deceased, Appellant (Plaintiff), v. TRANSCON LINES; Russel N. Holmes; Raymond E. Befus, in his capacity as Administrator of the Estate of Gerald A. Befus, deceased; and the State of Wyoming, Appellees (Defendants).

Raymond E. Befus, in his capacity as Administrator of the Estate of Gerald A. Befus, deceased, Appellant (Defendant), v. TRANSCON LINES; Russel N. Holmes; the State of Wyoming, Appellees (Defendants), v. Marilyn A. HAMLIN, individually and as Administratrix of the Estate of Calvin Harold Hamlin, deceased, Appellee (Plaintiff).

Nos. 83-221, 83-222.

Supreme Court of Wyoming.

April 1, 1985.

Rehearing Denied June 18, 1985.

Donald J. Sullivan, Cheyenne, for Marilyn A. Hamlin.

Richard Wolf, Cheyenne, for Raymond E. Befus.

Glenn A. Hottenstein of Guy, Williams, White & Argeris, Cheyenne, for Transcon Lines and Russel N. Holmes.

A.G. McClintock, Atty. Gen., Gerald A. Stack, Deputy Atty. Gen., John W. Renneisen, Senior Asst. Atty. Gen., and Terry J. Harris, Asst. Atty. Gen., Cheyenne, for the State of Wyo.

Before THOMAS ^*, C.J., and ROSE, ROONEY ^**, BROWN and CARDINE, JJ.

ROSE, Justice.

Prior to their accident, Hamlin and Befus were State of Wyoming employees whose sovereign immunity from suit had been removed by § 1-39-105, W.S.1977, 1984 Cum.Supp., ¹ of the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act, §§ 1-39-101 through 1-39-119, W.S.1977, 1984 Cum.Supp., and both of them were covered by, and their heirs are receiving, worker's compensation. By reason of the culpable negligence of Befus, both of these State employees were killed in an automobile mishap while in the scope of their employment.

In the district court, the Hamlin estate ² sued the State of Wyoming, purporting to be a third-party beneficiary under the contract Befus sued the State, alleging that, since the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act removed its sovereign-immunity protection, § 1-39-104(a), ⁶ by reason of the provisions contained in § 1-39-105, the estate should be indemnified by the State from the ravages of the Hamlin verdict under § 1-39-104(b).

formulated by § 1-39-104(b) ³ between the Befus estate and the State. By authority of statute ⁴ and case law, ⁵ Hamlin's estate also sued the Befus estate for wrongful death, alleging culpable negligence on the part of the Befus estate's decedent. Hamlin was awarded a wrongful-death verdict in the amount of $150,000 against Befus upon which judgment was entered in that amount, while Hamlin's claim for wrongful death against the State was dismissed on motion.

The trial court held that, since both Befus and Hamlin were covered by worker's compensation, neither estate could look to the State--their decedents' employer--for relief because of the exclusive-remedy provisions of the Wyoming Worker's Compensation Act.

We will affirm the trial court's holding that Hamlin has no standing to bring suit against the State of Wyoming for the death of Hamlin, and will hold that Hamlin, as a purported third-party beneficiary may not recover from the State on the statutory agreement contemplated by the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act, but will reverse the trial court's holding that Befus lacks standing to bring suit upon the statutory indemnity agreement on the grounds that the State, being the employer of Befus, was immune from suit under the worker's compensation law.

Hamlin's Theory for Relief

Hamlin, charging vicarious liability, not only seeks recovery against the State for wrongful death in consequence of co-employee Befus' culpable negligence, but also claims to be a beneficiary under the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act, § 1-39-104(b) (see n. 3). In this latter respect, even though Hamlin relies upon the same section of the Act as does Befus--namely, § 1-39-104(b)--Hamlin's theory of recovery from the employer State of Wyoming is necessarily different from that of Befus in that Hamlin--as a judgment creditor of Befus--is admittedly not an employee of the State of Wyoming against whom "liability is alleged" (§ 1-39-104(b) language) in either tort or contract within the contemplation of § 1-39-104(b), as is the case with Befus. Instead, Hamlin claims to be a third-party beneficiary of the statutory indemnity contract (§ 1-39-104(b)) between Befus and the State. The relevant allegations of the Hamlin estate's complaint, in this respect, are these:

"16. There did and does exist a written contractual agreement of indemnification by the STATE OF WYOMING for and to the benefit of GERALD A. BEFUS, deceased, pursuant to the terms of which the STATE OF WYOMING is obligated to indemnify and save harmless the said GERALD A. BEFUS, deceased, against the liability asserted herein, by reason of the commission of tortious conduct in the course and within the scope of his duties "17. The agreement for indemnification of the said GERALD A. BEFUS is and was intended specifically for the benefit of third-party victims of tortious misconduct by employees of the STATE OF WYOMING, including this plaintiff, and plaintiff is entitled to recover judgment against the defendant STATE OF WYOMING on the basis of said express indemnification agreement, set forth at § 1-39-104(b), W.S. (1977, as amended)."

and employment with the STATE OF WYOMING.

The State's Response to Hamlin

The State of Wyoming responds to the wrongful-death and third-party-beneficiary theories advanced by Hamlin by urging denial of liability because of the exclusive-remedy provisions of the worker's compensation law. ⁷

Befus' Theory for Relief

The Befus estate says that the indemnity and hold-harmless aspects of § 1-39-104(b) (see n. 3) inure to its benefit for two reasons: first, the plain language of the statute dictates that a State employee in Befus' position will be indemnified and held harmless and, secondly, the Act contemplates that Befus was a member of the class of State employees which the legislature intended would be protected since the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act abrogates Befus' common-law immunity which it first reaffirms in § 1-39-104(a) (see n. 6) and then removes in § 1-39-105 (see n. 1). In short, it is the position of the Befus estate that, absent the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act, Hamlin would not have been possessed of standing to bring a negligence suit because Befus would have been protected by the common-law sovereign-immunity doctrine, but, since the Act has removed this immunity through § 1-39-105, Befus falls within the class of public employee that the legislature said and intended would be indemnified and held harmless according to the mandate of § 1-39-104(b).

The State's Response to Befus

The State of Wyoming replies to Befus by asserting that it is an employer with an unqualified and absolute exemption under the worker's compensation law of this state (see n. 7) which, it argues, protects contributing employers--not only from tort claims, but also from employees' actions in contract--and, since Befus was an employee covered by worker's compensation, his employer, the State of Wyoming, has no obligation to indemnify and hold the Befus estate harmless under § 1-39-104(b) (see n. 2).

The Issue

Are Hamlin and Befus Entitled To the Benefits and Protections Contemplated By the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act and Particularly § 1-39-104(b), W.S.1977, 1984 Cum.Supp. Or Are They Foreclosed from Recovery by the Exclusive-Remedy Provisions of the Worker's Compensation Laws of This State Or Any Other Provisions of Law?

Decision Concerning Hamlin

Hamlin's Wrongful-Death Claim Against The State of Wyoming Is Proscribed by the Exclusive-Remedy Provisions of the Worker's Compensation Law

Insofar as the estate of Hamlin seeks to hold the State of Wyoming vicariously liable for the wrongful death of the estate's decedent, we agree with the trial court that the estate must fail by reason of the exclusive-remedy provisions of the Wyoming Constitution, Art. 10, § 4, and § 27-12-103(a) (see n. 7). ⁸ In Baker v. Wendy's of Montana, Inc., Wyo., 687 P.2d 885 (1984) (accord Parker v. Energy Development Co., Wyo., 691 P.2d 981 (1984)), we held that the contributing employer is absolutely immune from all tort claims arising out of any injury which is compensable under the Wyoming worker's compensation law. Hamlin's death resulted from a compensable injury, and therefore his employer, the State of Wyoming, is absolutely immune from Hamlin's wrongful-death action.

However, Hamlin's estate does not confine its claim to a reliance upon a suit against the State for the wrongful death of Hamlin. The Hamlin estate also seeks relief from the State of Wyoming by urging that it is a third-party beneficiary to the statutory agreement contained in § 1-39-104(b) (see n. 3) between Befus and the State of Wyoming. ⁹

Hamlin Is Precluded from Asserting A Presumed Third-Party-Beneficiary Agreement--But Not Because of the Worker's Compensation Employer-Immunity Provision

The employer--in the employer-employee Wyoming worker's compensation relationship--is possessed of absolute immunity from suit by an employee "by reason of any such injuries or death" (Art. 10, § 4, Wyoming Constitution), or for "injuries incurred in extrahazardous employments" (§ 27-12-103(a)). In other words, the employer immunity granted by Art. 10, § 4 and § 27-12-103(a) is immunity from personal-injury and wrongful-death actions only. This is so because the worker's compensation trade off between employer and employee envisioned a bargain whereby the insured worker and the estate of the deceased worker gave up all rights to common-law tort actions in return for which the employer would contribute to a fund which would compensate the employee or his or her estate for injury or death without regard to any except the culpable fault of the employee. ¹⁰

In the case at bar, the Hamlin estate correctly points out that its third-party-beneficiary claim is not founded in tort but...