Larmon v. Ccr Enterprises
| Decision Date | 30 May 2007 |
| Docket Number | No. A07A0111.,A07A0111. |
| Citation | 647 S.E.2d 306,285 Ga. App. 594 |
| Parties | LARMON v. CCR ENTERPRISES. |
| Court | Georgia Court of Appeals |
Thomas F. Lindsay, Rossville, for appellant.
Dennis D. Watson, Minor, Bell & Neal, Dalton, for appellee.
Fallon Larmon appeals from the trial court's order granting summary judgment to CCR Enterprises on Larmon's claim for damages for injuries received in an automobile accident. Larmon claimed that the accident was caused by a Blue Bird bus driven by Charles Chamlee, an employee of CCR. The trial court determined that Chamlee was an independent contractor, not an employee, and granted CCR's motion for summary judgment. We agree and affirm.
The accident in question involved a bus manufactured by Blue Bird in Lafayette, Georgia, that was being delivered to Florida Transportation Systems in Florida. CCR was in the business of delivering the Blue Bird buses to buyers around the country and it contracted with different drivers to drive the buses from the Blue Bird plant to the buyers' locations.
According to Calvin Norton, the president of CCR, the only employees of the company were Norton, his wife, and a bookkeeper. CCR's contract with Chamlee provided that he would be paid $313 before departure and was to deliver the bus to an address in Tampa, Florida, on September 19, 2003, the manner and method of performance were "within the Driver's discretion." The contract also stated that Chamlee was an independent contractor and therefore was responsible for his own insurance and taxes.
Norton stated that he contracted with several different drivers and they were paid for each trip on the basis of mileage. CCR did not pay for expenses or fuel. Each driver was responsible for going to the Blue Bird plant and getting the bus, and also for getting back home after delivering the bus.
The employer generally is not responsible for torts committed by his employee when the latter exercises an independent business, and in it is not subject to the immediate direction and control of the employer. In determining whether the relationship of parties under a contract for performance of labor is that of employer and servant or that of employer and independent contractor, the chief test lies in whether the contract gives, or the employer assumes, the right to control the time, manner, and method of executing the work as distinguished from the right merely to require certain definite results in conformity to the contract. Where the contract of employment clearly denominates the other party as an independent contractor, that relationship is presumed to be true unless the evidence shows that the employer assumed such control. On the other hand, where the contract specifies that the employee's status shall be that of independent contractor but at the same time provides that he shall be subject to any rules or policies of the employer which may be adopted in the future, no such presumption arises.
(Citations and punctuation omitted.) Ross v. Ninety-Two West, 201 Ga.App. 887, 891-892, 412 S.E.2d 876 (1991).
In this case, although the contract states that Chamlee was an independent contractor, Larmon argues that the evidence is to the contrary. S...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
In Re Fedex Ground Package System Inc.
...at 16-24 (citing cases) [Doc. No. 1770]; see also RBF Holding Co. v. Williamson, 397 S.E.2d 440, 441 (Ga. 1990); Larmon v. CCR Enters., 647 S.E.2d 306, 595 (Ga. Ct. App. 2007); Cotton States Mut. Ins. Co. v. Kinzalow, 634Page 57 S.E.2d 172, 175 (Ga. Ct. App. 2006). Some Georgia cases have t......
-
In re Fedex Ground Package System Inc.
...cases) [Doc. No. 1770]; see also RBF Holding Co. v. Williamson, 260 Ga. 526, 397 S.E.2d 440, 441 (1990); Larmon v. CCR Enters., 285 Ga.App. 594, 595, 647 S.E.2d 306 (2007); Cotton States Mut. Ins. Co. v. Kinzalow, 280 Ga.App. 397, 634 S.E.2d 172, 175 (2006). Some Georgia cases have turned t......
-
Stubbs Oil Company, Inc. v. Price
...").24 Clarendon Nat'l Ins. Co., 293 Ga. App. at 109-10 (1) (b), 666 S.E.2d 567 (punctuation omitted).25 Larmon v. CCR Enters. , 285 Ga. App. 594, 596, 647 S.E.2d 306 (2007) (punctuation omitted); accord Allrid v. Emory Univ. , 249 Ga. 35, 40 (2), 285 S.E.2d 521 (1982) ; see Ward v. DirecTV ......
-
Stubbs Oil Co. v. Price
...").24 Clarendon Nat'l Ins. Co., 293 Ga. App. at 109-10 (1) (b), 666 S.E.2d 567 (punctuation omitted).25 Larmon v. CCR Enters. , 285 Ga. App. 594, 596, 647 S.E.2d 306 (2007) (punctuation omitted); accord Allrid v. Emory Univ. , 249 Ga. 35, 40 (2), 285 S.E.2d 521 (1982) ; see Ward v. DirecTV ......