Karas v. Strevell

• Citation: 884 N.E.2d 122,227 Ill.2d 440
• Decision Date: 22 February 2008
• Docket Number: No. 104133.,No. 104123.,104123.,104133.
• Parties: Robert KARAS, Appellee, v. Joseph STREVELL et al., Appellants.
• Court: Supreme Court of Illinois

884 N.E.2d 122

227 Ill.2d 440

Robert KARAS, Appellee, v. Joseph STREVELL et al., Appellants.

No. 104123.

No. 104133.

Supreme Court of Illinois.

February 22, 2008.

Kenneth S. McLaughlin, Jr., of Esp, Kreuzer, Cores & McLaughlin, LLP, Wheaton, for appellant Joseph Strevell.

Michael Resis, Ellen L. Green, Timothy Liam Epstein, of SmithAmundsen LLC, Chicago, for appellant Russell Zimmerman.

Matthew D. Jacobson, Amy R. Miller, of Swanson, Martin & Bell, LLP, Lisle, for appellants Naperville Central Redhawk Association et al.

Patrick L. Provenzale, of Ekl Williams PLLC, Clarendon Hills, for appellee.

Karen L. Kendall, Brad A. Elward, of Heyl, Royster, Voelker & Allen, Peoria, for amicus curiae Illinois Association of Defense Counsel.

David J. Loughname, Garrett L. Boehm, Jr., of Johnson & Bell, Ltd., Chicago (John P. Borger, Leita Walker, of Faegre & Benson LLP, Minneapolis, Minnesota, of counsel), for amicus curiae USA Hockey, Inc.

Richard L. Steagall, of Nicoara & Steagall, Peoria, for amicus curiae Illinois Trial Lawyer's Association.

OPINION

Justice BURKE delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion:

Plaintiff, Robert Karas, filed a complaint on behalf of his minor son, Benjamin Karas, alleging that Benjamin was injured while playing in an organized ice hockey game when he was bodychecked from behind by two opposing players. The complaint alleged that the opposing players' conduct was willful and wanton, and further alleged that the opposing players' team, the governing association of the officials who refereed the game, and the amateur hockey league to which the opposing teams belonged, had both negligently, and willfully and wantonly, caused the injury. In addition, the complaint alleged a civil conspiracy between the hockey league and officials' associations to forgo enforcing a rule against bodychecking players from behind.

Both the player and organizational defendants filed motions to dismiss pursuant to section 2-615 of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/2-615 (West 2004)). The circuit court of Du Page County, relying primarily on the contact sports exception adopted by this court in Pfister v. Shusta, 167 Ill.2d 417, 212 Ill.Dec. 668, 657 N.E.2d 1013 (1995), dismissed plaintiff's complaint in its entirety.

On appeal, the appellate court reversed in part and affirmed in part. 369 Ill. App.3d 884, 308 Ill.Dec. 81, 860 N.E.2d 1163. The court concluded that plaintiff had successfully pled willful and wanton conduct on the part of the player defendants, had successfully pled negligence on the part of the organizational defendants, and had successfully pled a civil conspiracy. However, the appellate court affirmed the circuit court's dismissal of plaintiff's allegations of willful and wanton conduct against the organizational defendants.

For the reasons that follow, we reverse that portion of the appellate court judgment which allowed the claims of willful and wanton conduct on the part of the player defendants, and negligence and civil conspiracy on the part of the organizational defendants, to go forward. We affirm that portion of the appellate court judgment which dismissed the allegations of willful and wanton conduct against the organizational defendants. We also remand the cause to the circuit court with instructions.

BACKGROUND

The following facts are taken from plaintiff's second amended complaint. In January of 2004, Benjamin Karas was a member of the Barrington High School Hockey Club's junior varsity hockey team. Russell Zimmerman and Joseph Strevell, the player defendants, were members of a junior varsity hockey team run by defendant Naperville Central Redhawk Hockey Association (Redhawk Hockey). Both teams were members of a hockey league, defendant Amateur Hockey Association Illinois, Inc. (the Hockey Association), and were governed by hockey rules which the Hockey Association promulgated. One of these rules was a prohibition against bodychecking players from behind.

On January 25, 2004, the Barrington team played the Naperville team in an organized ice hockey game. The game was refereed by officials with defendant Illinois Hockey Officials Association (the Officials Association). On the back of each player's jersey the word "STOP" had been sewn above or between the player's number to reinforce the rule against bodychecking players from behind. According to plaintiff's complaint, during the game, the player defendants struck Benjamin "from behind on his back area causing his head to strike the boards resulting in serious personal injury, including neck and head injuries."

On September 14, 2004, plaintiff filed an eight-count, second amended complaint in the circuit court of Du Page County. Count I of the complaint alleged that Benjamin's injuries were caused by the player defendants' willful and wanton conduct. The complaint states:

"10. On January 25, 2004, the Unknown Defendants, JOSEPH STREVELL and RUSSELL ZIMMERMAN, showed willful and wanton disregard for the safety of the Minor Plaintiff, BENJAMIN S. KARAS, in one or more of the following ways:

a. Struck the Minor Plaintiff from behind when he was in such a position that they knew or should have known of the possibility of inflicting serious injury on him;

b. Struck the Minor Plaintiff from behind when he was in close proximity to the boards [such] that they knew or should have known of the possibility of inflicting serious injury on him;

c. Struck the Minor Plaintiff from behind when he was in such a position and close proximity to the boards that they knew or should have known of the possibility of inflicting serious injury on him;

d. `Back checked'[¹] the Minor Plaintiff at a time when he was partially bent over and looking down with his head pointing towards the boards;

e. Failed to refrain from `back checking' the Minor Plaintiff in violation of contest rules;

f. Were otherwise reckless."

Counts II, IV, and VI of the second amended complaint alleged negligence on the part of Redhawk Hockey, the Hockey Association, and the Officials Association. Count II alleged that Redhawk Hockey "failed to instruct its players" to refrain from bodychecking opposing players from behind; "failed to discipline, sanction or otherwise control its players" who were known to bodycheck from behind; "promoted, encouraged or otherwise condoned its players" to bodycheck from behind; and "failed to supervise the activities of its players."

Count IV of the second amended complaint alleged that the Hockey Association "failed to instruct its authorized member teams to refrain their players" from bodychecking from behind; "failed to instruct [the Officials Association] to strictly enforce" the rule against bodychecking from behind; "failed to discipline, sanction or otherwise control" both Redhawk Hockey and the Officials Association; "promoted, encouraged or otherwise condoned" bodychecking from behind; and "failed to supervise" both Redhawk Hockey and the Officials Association.

Count VI alleged that the Officials Association "failed to strictly enforce" the rule against bodychecking from behind; "failed to discipline, sanction or otherwise control its member officials regarding their known failures to strictly enforce" the rule against bodychecking from behind; "promoted, encouraged or otherwise condoned its member officials to fail to strictly enforce" the rule against bodychecking from behind; and "failed to supervise the activities of its member officials."

Counts III, V, and VII of plaintiff's second amended complaint repeated the allegations found in counts II, IV, and VI verbatim. However, instead of alleging negligence, counts III, V, and VII alleged, respectively, that Redhawk Hockey, the Hockey Association, and the Officials Association "showed willful and wanton disregard for the safety of" Benjamin Karas.

Finally, count VIII of plaintiff's second amended complaint alleged that there was a civil conspiracy between the Hockey Association and the Officials Association "not to enforce" the rule against bodychecking from behind, and that this conspiracy caused Benjamin's injury.

The player and organizational defendants moved to dismiss plaintiff's second amended complaint pursuant to section 2-615 of the Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/2-615 (West 2004)). On March 14, 2005, the circuit court granted the motions filed by the player defendants and dismissed count I of the second amended complaint.

On July 1, 2005, the circuit court dismissed the remaining counts of the complaint. In a written order, the circuit court explained the reasons for the dismissals, including the previous dismissal of count I. With respect to count I, the court noted the rule, adopted by this court in Pfister v. Shusta, 167 Ill.2d 417, 212 Ill. Dec. 668, 657 N.E.2d 1013 (1995), that a plaintiff who is injured by a coparticipant while engaged in a contact sport may only recover if the injury was the result of intentional or willful and wanton conduct. The circuit court concluded that the ice hockey game at issue was a contact sport, and that plaintiff had failed to plead willful and wanton conduct on the part of the player defendants.

With respect to counts II, IV, and VI, the negligence counts directed against Redhawk Hockey, the Hockey Association and the Officials Association, the court concluded that "no duty of care exists in Illinois for claims arising out of negligence in high school contact sports." Accordingly, the circuit court dismissed these counts.

The court also dismissed counts III, V, and VI for failing to allege willful and wanton conduct on the part of the organizational defendants. The court noted, however, that in counts III and V plaintiff alleged that Redhawk Hockey and the Hockey Association had "promoted, encouraged or otherwise condoned players" to bodycheck from behind. The circuit court observed that actively encouraging a player to violate the rules went beyond mere negligence, but also found that, as pled, ...