Pfaff v. Chrysler Corp.
| Decision Date | 11 February 1991 |
| Docket Number | No. 2-90-0909,2-90-0909 |
| Citation | 208 Ill.App.3d 910,567 N.E.2d 52,153 Ill.Dec. 337 |
| Parties | , 153 Ill.Dec. 337 Richard PFAFF, Plaintiff, v. CHRYSLER CORPORATION, et al., Defendants (Chrysler Corporation, Third-Party Plaintiff-Appellant; Skyline Industrial Service, Inc., Third-Party Defendant-Appellee; J.P. Cullen & Sons, Inc., Third-Party Defendant). |
| Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
Rehearing Denied March 19, 1991.
Debra K. Marcus (argued), William R. Power, Stephen J. Tasch, Pappas, Power & Marcus, Chicago, for Chrysler Corp.
Patrick D. Riley (argued), Loretta M. Griffin, O'Connor, Schiff & Myers, Chicago, and Douglas Pomatto, Heyl, Royster, Voelker & Allen, Peoria, for Skyline Indus. Service.
Michael D. Fisher, Goldberg Fohrman & Weisman, Ltd., Kevin R. Sido, Hinshaw, Culbertson, Moelmann, Hogan & Fuller, Chicago, for appellees.
Defendant and third-party plaintiff, Chrysler Corporation (Chrysler), brings this interlocutory appeal from an order of the circuit court of Boone County enjoining Chrysler from proceeding with an indemnity action against third-party defendant, Skyline Industrial Service, Inc. (Skyline), which it filed in the State of Michigan. The trial court determined that the Michigan action, which was filed after the Illinois court ruled that Chrysler's indemnity actions would not lie in Illinois, represented an attempt by Chrysler to evade the prior jurisdiction of the circuit court.
At issue on appeal is whether the trial court properly enjoined Chrysler from proceeding with the out-of-State action.
The instant litigation commenced on July 2, 1987, with the filing of a complaint in the circuit court of Cook County by plaintiff, Richard Pfaff, an employee of Skyline, against Chrysler and J.S. Alberici Construction Company, Inc. (Alberici), seeking to recover for personal injuries sustained at Chrysler's Belvidere, Illinois, plant. Count I of plaintiff's complaint sought recovery under the Structural Work Act (), and count II was based on allegations of negligence. On September 21, 1987, Chrysler filed a forum non conveniens motion seeking transfer of the cause to the circuit court of Boone County. The circuit court of Cook County granted Chrysler's motion and ordered the cause transferred to the circuit court of Boone County.
On June 2, 1988, plaintiff filed his first amended complaint adding J.P. Cullen & Sons, Inc., and J.P. Cullen & Son Construction Corp. (Cullen) as defendants. By an agreed order entered August 25, 1988, plaintiff voluntarily dismissed its complaint insofar as it sought recovery against Alberici.
On October 14, 1988, Chrysler filed a third-party complaint against Skyline and Cullen. The first eight counts of the third-party complaint were against Skyline, with whom Chrysler had entered into a series of contracts for various construction and repair jobs. Count I sought recovery from Skyline under a theory of common-law indemnity; count II sought recovery pursuant to the Contribution Act (Ill.Rev.Stat.1987, ch. 70, par. 302); and counts III, IV, and VI through IX were based on contractual indemnity provisions and sought to compel Skyline to indemnify Chrysler for any judgment against it and for the costs incurred in defending against plaintiff's suit. Count VI specifically alleged that Skyline breached a contractual obligation to purchase liability insurance which would hold Chrysler harmless. Counts X through XVII were against Cullen. There was no count V in the third-party complaint.
On December 29, 1988, Skyline filed both its answer to count II of Chrysler's third-party complaint and a motion to dismiss the remaining counts against it. Citing Thatcher v. Commonwealth Edison Co. (1988), 123 Ill.2d 275, 123 Ill.Dec. 486, 527 N.E.2d 1261, Skyline moved to dismiss count I of the third-party complaint on the ground that common-law indemnity is no longer recognized in Illinois. Again citing Thatcher and the statutory prohibition against indemnity provisions in construction contracts (Ill.Rev.Stat.1987, ch. 29, par. 61), Skyline also moved to dismiss counts III through IX on the basis that an action for either implied or contractual indemnification is not available in Illinois. Skyline additionally moved to dismiss the breach of contract portion of count VI on the basis that Chrysler waived any claim it had against Skyline for its alleged failure to purchase insurance. Chrysler responded by contending that Thatcher does not foreclose all common-law indemnity actions and that the contractual indemnity provisions are valid under Michigan law, which was to govern the contracts.
A hearing on Skyline's motion to dismiss the implied and contractual indemnity provisions of Chrysler's third-party complaint was held on June 29, 1989. The trial court first held that count I would be dismissed because Illinois does not recognize actions for common-law indemnity. The court then ruled that, pursuant to Donaldson v. Fluor Engineers, Inc. (1988), 169 Ill.App.3d 759, 120 Ill.Dec. 202, 523 N.E.2d 1113, the contractual indemnity provisions would be governed by Illinois law rather than Michigan law. The court concluded that the remaining counts at issue, which were based on contractual indemnification provisions, were void under Illinois law and would be stricken. The court stated that only count VI, which dealt with an alleged breach of Skyline's contractual obligation to purchase insurance, might be curable. The trial court entered an order dismissing count I and counts III through IX of the third-party complaint and allowing Chrysler 28 days to file an amended complaint. The court specified that its order of dismissal was without prejudice to refiling an amended complaint, but it ruled that the validity of the indemnity counts would not be relitigated.
On July 28, Chrysler filed an amended third-party complaint which again advanced eight counts against Skyline based on common-law indemnity, contractual indemnity and contribution. Skyline filed a motion to dismiss count I and counts III through IX of the amended third-party complaint because of Illinois' policy against indemnity and indemnity agreements, the same basis upon which the trial court had earlier dismissed the corresponding counts of the original third-party complaint. Without responding to Skyline's motion, Chrysler filed a second amended third-party complaint. Count I of the second amended third-party complaint sought contribution from Skyline, and count II sought contribution from Cullen. No indemnity counts were included in Chrysler's second amended third-party complaint.
On May 17, 1990, Skyline filed a motion asking the court to enter an order pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 304(a) (134 Ill.2d R. 304(a)) declaring that there was no just reason to delay enforcement or appeal of the court's June 29, 1989, order dismissing the indemnity counts of Chrysler's original third-party complaint. The motion set forth the following additional allegations regarding Chrysler's conduct following the filing of its first amended third-party complaint:
Attached to the motion was a copy of the complaint filed by Chrysler in the Michigan action. Count I of that complaint alleged that Skyline breached various contractual duties to indemnify Chrysler, and count II sought declaratory relief regarding the parties' contractual rights and obligations.
Chrysler's response to Skyline's motion asserted that no Rule 304(a) finding could be made because the counts at issue were no longer before the court.
On June 21, 1990, Skyline filed an amended motion asking the court to enjoin Chrysler from proceeding outside of Boone County with any action related to the instant proceedings. Chrysler responded that the order dismissing the indemnity counts of its third-party complaint was not final and did not preclude Chrysler from seeking contractual relief against Skyline in a Michigan court. In a supplemental response to Skyline's motion, Chrysler noted that Skyline had appeared before the Michigan court and filed a motion for summary judgment and/or dismissal of Chrysler's action there because of the pendency of the Illinois action and under the doctrine of forum non conveniens. Chrysler's motion noted that the Michigan court found it had jurisdiction over the action and denied Skyline's motion.
A hearing on Skyline's motion in the Boone County circuit court was held on July 19, 1990. At that hearing, counsel for Skyline argued that Chrysler was attempting to refile its indemnification counts in Michigan after having received an unfavorable ruling on the same issues in Illinois. Skyline characterized such action as "forum shopping." Chrysler noted that the circuit court's order of dismissal had granted Chrysler leave to amend its pleadings. Chrysler contended that its indemnity counts "were withdrawn or amended out of Boone County and filed in Michigan" and that there was "no contractual claim pending" before the Boone County court.
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Pfaff v. Chrysler Corp.
...Michigan action. Chrysler appealed the trial court's decision to our appellate court. The appellate court reversed. (208 Ill.App.3d 910, 153 Ill.Dec. 337, 567 N.E.2d 52.) We granted Skyline's petition for leave to appeal (134 Ill.2d R. 315) and consolidated Skyline's appeal with the Daiwa B......
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MORRIS B. CHAPMAN & ASSOC. v. Kitzman
...the res judicata effect which the judgment would be accorded in the State which rendered it." Pfaff v. Chrysler Corp., 208 Ill.App.3d 910, 922, 153 Ill.Dec. 337, 567 N.E.2d 52, 60 (1991), aff'd, 155 Ill.2d 35, 182 Ill.Dec. 627, 610 N.E.2d 51 (1992). Thus, we must apply Missouri law in deter......
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Morris B. Chapman & Associates, Ltd. v. Kitzman
...the res judicata effect which the judgment would be accorded in the State which rendered it." Pfaff v. Chrysler Corp., 208 Ill.App.3d 910, 922, 153 Ill.Dec. 337, 567 N.E.2d 52, 60 (1991), aff'd, 155 Ill.2d 35, 182 Ill.Dec. 627, 610 N.E.2d 51 (1992). Therefore, we must apply Missouri law in ......
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...Ct. App. 1994) (citing Pacific Gas & Elc. Co. v. Bear Stearns & Co., 791 P.2d 587 (Cal. 1990)). 179. See, e.g., Pfaff v. Chrysler Corp., 567 N.E.2d 52 (Ill. App. 1991) (involving initial tort action in Illinois, a state that does not recognize certain indemnity actions, and defendant’s atte......
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