Smith v. Divoll
| Decision Date | 09 June 2022 |
| Docket Number | s. 21-P-121 & 21-P-124 |
| Citation | 101 Mass.App.Ct. 144,190 N.E.3d 513 |
| Parties | Adam C. SMITH v. Andrew DIVOLL (and a companion case ). |
| Court | Appeals Court of Massachusetts |
Paul E. Mitchell, Boston, for the plaintiff.
Patrick J. Markey for Andrew Divoll.
Michael Melville, Worcester, for Da Brothers Contractors, LLC.
Present: Neyman, Desmond, & Hershfang, JJ.
Adam C. Smith lost a leg and suffered other serious injuries when his motorcycle was hit by a car. Smith maintains that the accident resulted from the flawed design and layout of the painted lines in a restaurant parking lot, which did not afford drivers leaving the parking lot an adequate view of eastbound traffic. In the cases before us, Smith sued both the person who laid out and painted those lines, Andrew Divoll, and the general contractor responsible for the construction of the restaurant, Da Brothers Contractors, LLC (Da Brothers). On summary judgment, the judge dismissed the claims against Divoll and Da Brothers, concluding that those claims were barred by the statute of repose, G. L. c. 260, § 2B.3 We affirm.
Background. We summarize the facts in the light most favorable to Smith. On November 25, 2017, a driver pulled out of the parking lot of a restaurant at 632 Parker Street in Gardner and hit Smith, who was riding his motorcycle eastbound on Parker Street. At the exit to the parking lot, the view to the west was obstructed by signs, bushes, a telephone pole, and an electrical box. The driver followed an "out" arrow painted on the asphalt when driving out of the parking lot. Smith was seriously injured and lost a leg.
Divoll, doing business as Lakeside Line Painting, painted most of the lines on the parking lot's asphalt surface before November 22, 2011, during a period of substantial construction on the property at 632 Parker Street.4 Following guidance from the property owner's representative, Divoll laid out and painted twenty-one parking-spot lines, one handicapped symbol, two grids, and one "No Parking" marker. Divoll painted the lines on an unmarked surface of newly laid asphalt.5
At the time Divoll painted the lines on the parking lot, he had worked as a line painter for approximately eleven years, following on-the-job training from his father-in-law in operating the sprayer that is used to paint lines on parking lots. Divoll was aware that towns have different bylaws governing parking-lot lines, including requirements for the spacing and color of those lines. He creates layouts for parking lots referring, as needed, to a book that he described as an "A to Z about ... striping." This book has information such as the correct offset for painting lines with a designated angle (e.g., sixty degrees). Laying out original parking-lot lines involves measuring the spaces, marking them with a "chalk line," and complying with any applicable plans.
Da Brothers was the general contractor for the project at 632 Parker Street.
Discussion. 1. Standard of review. We review a grant of summary judgment de novo to determine whether, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, "all material facts have been established and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law" (citation omitted). Casseus v. Eastern Bus Co., 478 Mass. 786, 792, 89 N.E.3d 1184 (2018). "The moving party bears the burden of affirmatively demonstrating the absence of a triable issue." Milliken & Co. v. Duro Textiles, LLC, 451 Mass. 547, 550 n.6, 887 N.E.2d 244 (2008). If the moving party carries its burden, "the party opposing the motion must respond and allege specific facts establishing the existence of a genuine issue of material fact." French King Realty Inc. v. Interstate Fire & Cas. Co., 79 Mass. App. Ct. 653, 659-660, 948 N.E.2d 1244 (2011).
2. The statute of repose. General Laws c. 260, § 2B, reads, in pertinent part, as follows:
"Action of tort for damages arising out of any deficiency or neglect in the design, planning, construction or general administration of an improvement to real property ... shall be commenced only within three years next after the cause of action accrues; provided, however, that in no event shall such actions be commenced more than six years after the earlier of the dates of: (1) the opening of the improvement to use; or (2) substantial completion of the improvement and the taking of possession for occupancy by the owner."
"As a statute of repose, G. L. c. 260, § 2B, precludes recovery against those within the protection of the statute for any injury which occurs more than six years after the performance or furnishing of the design, planning, construction, or general administration of an improvement to real property." Klein v. Catalano, 386 Mass. 701, 702, 437 N.E.2d 514 (1982). It is undisputed that the accident occurred more than six years after the lines were painted. We therefore address the applicability of the remaining provisions of § 2B.
3. Analysis. "[ Section] 2B was intended not to apply to mere suppliers of standardized products, but only to the kinds of economic actors who perform acts of ‘individual expertise’ akin to those commonly thought to be performed by architects and contractors -- that is to say, to parties who render particularized services for the design and construction of particular improvements to particular pieces of real property." Dighton v. Federal Pac. Elec. Co., 399 Mass. 687, 696, 506 N.E.2d 509, cert. denied, 484 U.S. 953, 108 S.Ct. 345, 98 L.Ed.2d 371 (1987). Id. at 694, 506 N.E.2d 509. The terms of § 2B instead "extend protection to persons allegedly responsible for acts, i.e., those who commit ‘any deficiency or neglect in the design, planning, construction, or general administration of an improvement to real property." Id., quoting G. L. c. 260, § 2B.
"Although the word ‘improvement’ is not defined in the statute, [Massachusetts appellate courts] have previously found the definition found in Webster's Third New Int'l Dictionary 1138 (1961) helpful: ‘a permanent addition to or betterment of real property that enhances its capital value and that involves the expenditure of labor or money and is designed to make the property more useful or valuable as distinguished from ordinary repairs.’ " Conley v. Scott Products, Inc., 401 Mass. 645, 647, 518 N.E.2d 849 (1988).
Smith contends that (1) Divoll was not a protected actor because he was unqualified to lay out the parking-lot lines and (2) the lines were not an improvement to real property.
a. Protected actor or protected act. The statute of repose protects those who provide "particularized services for the design and construction of particular improvements to particular pieces of real property," rather than merely supply standardized products. Dighton, 399 Mass. at 696, 506 N.E.2d 509. While certain actors -- architects, engineers, and contractors -- are presumptively included, others may also fall within the statute if they engage in protected acts. See id. at 695-696, 506 N.E.2d 509.
Applying this framework to Divoll's parking-lot lines, we conclude that those lines were custom designed for the location, following applicable rules and regulations for the size of parking spaces, placement of handicapped spaces, color of paint to be used, and needs of the business. They were designed by Divoll, or another, for this piece of property alone, accounting for the size of the parking lot, location of the restaurant, and instructions from the property owner's representative. The work relied on individual expertise. See McDonough v. Marr Scaffolding Co., 412 Mass. 636, 641-642, 591 N.E.2d 1079 (1992). The parking-lot lines were a bespoke solution for the needs of 632 Parker Street, rather than a standardized product susceptible of commercial purchase and general use. Compare id. at 642, 591 N.E.2d 1079 (); Rosario v. M.D. Knowlton Co., 54 Mass. App. Ct. 796, 802, 767 N.E.2d 1126 (2002) (), with Dighton, 399 Mass. at 694-696, 506 N.E.2d 509 (). The laying out and painting of the lines was a protected activity, and Divoll a protected actor.6
b. Improvement to real property. The parking-lot lines were an improvement to the property at 632 Parker Street. Without the lines, the parking lot was an undifferentiated area of asphalt on which cars might park or drive willy-nilly. The lines imposed order, enhancing safety by providing predictability for drivers and pedestrians who used the parking lot. They added value for the owner of the property by ensuring that the space was efficiently and safely used. The addition of the lines required the "expenditure of labor [and] money" (citation omitted), Conley, 401 Mass. at 647, 518 N.E.2d 849, with Divoll providing the labor and the owner of the property paying the money. The fact that the lines periodically needed repainting as they became faded by time, weather, and natural processes does nothing to disturb this conclusion.7 See, e.g., ...
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