Ruppa v. American States Ins. Co.
| Decision Date | 12 December 1979 |
| Docket Number | No. 77-022,77-022 |
| Citation | 91 Wis.2d 628,284 N.W.2d 318 |
| Parties | Jeanette RUPPA, Individually and as Personal Representative of the Estate of Doctor Rex Ruppa, Deceased, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. AMERICAN STATES INSURANCE COMPANY, a Foreign Corporation, the Madison Saddle Club, the Madison Imperial Horse Show, Mrs. Jesse Nelson, Gordon Volz, George E. Holmes, Thomas Caine, Maurice E. Klinke, all Individually and doing business as Madison Saddle Club and/or the Madison Imperial Horse Show, Roy H. Gumtow, Marvin Peterson, County of Dane, Federal Insurance Company, a Foreign Corporation, Harold Brite and Buck Johnson, Defendants-Respondents. |
| Court | Wisconsin Supreme Court |
Edward Rudolph, Milwaukee, for plaintiff-appellant.
Boardman, Suhr, Curry & Field, Ross & Stevens, W. J. Stern, Wightman, Thurow & Sauthoff, Winner, McCallum & Hendee, Axley, Brynelson, Herrick & Gehl, and Bell, Metzner & Seibold, Madison, Brennan, Steil, Ryan, Basting & MacDougall, Janesville, and Paul E. Vos, Mitchellville, Iowa, on brief for defendants-respondents; Harry Sauthoff, Jr., and Claude J. Covelli, Madison, argued.
Frank M. Coyne, Madison, on brief, for defendants-respondents and the Madison Saddle Club.
Michael Cassidy, Madison, for the Madison Saddle Club.
Robert R. Studt (argued), and Jenswold, Studt, Hanson, Clark & Kaufmann, Madison, on brief, for American States Ins. Co..
The accident that gave rise to the wrongful death action occurred on August 2, 1973, during the Madison Imperial Horse Show conducted on the Dane County Exposition grounds. Most of the events took place in a building called the Coliseum. However, the accident in question occurred in the building called the Arena. Dr. Rex Ruppa entered an event called "cutting." Cutting is the separating of one animal from a herd of cattle. This exercise requires a well-trained horse. Dr. Ruppa, an experienced horseman, owned such a horse and used it in this contest. While participating in the event the horse slipped and fell, severely injuring Dr. Ruppa. He died of those injuries about six months later.
The named defendants are as follows: (1) Dane County and its insurer, Federal Insurance Company; (2) Roy Gumtow and Marvin Peterson, the county employees who managed the Dane County Arena and Exposition grounds; (3) George Holmes, Gordon Volz, Mrs. Jesse Nelson, Thomas Caine, and Maurice Klinke, all officers and/or members of the Madison Saddle Club; (4) the Madison Saddle Club, a nonstock, nonprofit corporation which sponsored the Madison Imperial Horse Show; and (5) Harold Brite and Basil "Buck" Johnson, the two judges employed by the Madison Saddle Club to officiate at the Madison Imperial Horse Show. 1
The complaint alleges that the death of Dr. Ruppa was caused by the negligence of all of the defendants (excepting the insurers) in their failure to provide and maintain a safe and suitable place for the horse show in breach of their duties under common law, the Wisconsin safe-place statute, and the lease agreement between the Madison Saddle Club and Dane County.
The Madison Imperial Horse Show was an annual event put on by the Madison Saddle Club. The club itself was an organization of between 25 and 35 members who paid dues of $10 per year. The main purpose of the club was to bring people together who had a mutual interest in horses.
The defendant Nelson, the secretary of the club, testified in a discovery deposition that this interest was manifested in the annual horse show put on by the club and that there were few other activities they engaged in. She further testified that although the horse show had not been financially successful in recent years (the club lost $9,000 on it in 1973), it had been in the past and deficits were paid out of the surplus that they had accumulated. During the years when the show had provided income, the profits were either distributed to charities or kept in reserve for future shows. At no time did any of the members of the Saddle Club receive any of the proceeds of the show, nor were they compensated for the time and effort they devoted to putting on the show.
In 1973, as in previous years, the Dane County Exposition grounds were leased for the horse show. Gordon Volz and Jesse Nelson signed the lease as president and secretary of the Madison Saddle Club. Under the provisions of the lease the Madison Saddle Club agreed to "so conduct its activities upon the premises as not to endanger any person lawfully thereon." The lease also provided that a dirt or clay covering would be installed by the county over the concrete floor base. Once the show began, however, floor care was to be the responsibility of the Madison Saddle Club.
The "cutting" event had first been included as part of the Madison Imperial Horse Show in 1972 upon the recommendation of defendant George Holmes. When it was decided to again include a cutting event in the 1973 show, Holmes took the initiative in making the necessary arrangements. The cutting event was held in the Arena. Most of the other events were held in the Coliseum. Defendant Volz, in a discovery deposition, testified that George Holmes took charge of the show at the Arena and that the major responsibility for any of the physical accommodations pertaining to the cutting contest was his. Holmes was in the Arena announcing the event when Dr. Ruppa's accident occurred.
Dr. Ruppa was required to sign and did sign an "entry blank" as a condition of entering the horse show. Directly over Dr. Ruppa's signature is a paragraph designed "Owner's Statement, Name, Agent, Address, Assumption and Release of Liability." That paragraph reads as follows:
On the basis of this language, all of the defendants moved for and were granted summary judgment. The trial court held that although "the release signed by Dr. Ruppa did not specifically identify the intended beneficiaries of the release from liability," nevertheless the language of the release was broad enough to cover all of the defendants in the action.
The trial court further ruled, in a supplemental decision on motion for summary judgment, that with respect to some of the defendants there were additional grounds on which to grant the motion. The court held the defendant American States Insurance Company was also entitled to summary judgment because the policy issued by it to the Madison Saddle Club did not provide coverage for liability for Dr. Ruppa's injury. The court also held that defendants Volz, Nelson, Holmes, Caine and Klinke could not be found personally liable because of their status as members of the Saddle Club, a corporate entity.
The principal issue is whether the terms of the "Assumption and Release of Liability" are sufficient to relieve all of the defendants of liability.
The release signed by Dr. Ruppa constitutes a contract. Dr. Ruppa signed it in consideration of the acceptance of his entry into the horse show. A contract is to be so construed as to give effect to the intention of the parties. 2 Any provisions which are ambiguous are to be construed against the party that drafted the contract, in this case the Madison Saddle Club. With respect to indemnity contracts, 3 such agreements will generally not be construed to cover losses caused by the indemnitee's own negligence unless such effect is clearly and unequivocally expressed in the agreement. 4
Under the terms of the "Assumption and Release of Liability" signed by Dr. Ruppa, he agreed to be personally liable and that the sponsors of the Madison Imperial Horse Show would not under any circumstances be liable or responsible for any injury, damage or loss "caused by or resulting from the presence, use or operation of any animal(s), vehicle(s), equipment, product(s) or goods owned and/or exhibited" by him at the show. However, the complaint alleges that Dr. Ruppa's injuries were caused by and resulted from the negligent failure of the defendants to provide and maintain a safe place for the presentation of the cutting event. The appellant seeks to recover for injury and death caused by and resulting from the allegedly defective condition of the floor of the arena, property owned or under the control of the defendants. Dr. Ruppa did not sign an agreement to assume liability or release anyone from liability for injury caused by or resulting from the negligence of another or from the condition of another or from liability for injury caused by or resulting from the condition of any property other than his own. While the Madison Saddle Club and its officers may have intended the release to protect it from liability for its own negligence, the terms of the release do not accomplish that result.
Another difficulty with the release is that it fails to specifically identify who the parties are that are released from liability. It...
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