Superior Ins. Co. v. Jackson

• Court: Texas Supreme Court
• Writing for the Court: CULVER; McCALL
• Citation: Superior Ins. Co. v. Jackson, 156 Tex. 61, 291 S.W.2d 689 (Tex. 1956)
• Decision Date: 20 June 1956
• Docket Number: No. A-5777,A-5777
• Parties: SUPERIOR INSURANCE COMPANY, Petitioner, v. L. F. JACKSON, Respondent.

Page 689

291 S.W.2d 689

156 Tex. 61

SUPERIOR INSURANCE COMPANY, Petitioner, v. L. F. JACKSON, Respondent.

No. A-5777.

Supreme Court of Texas.

June 20, 1956.

Rehearing Denied July 18, 1956.

Gullett & Gullett, Denison, Strasburger, Price, Kelton, Miller & Martin, Dallas, for petitioner.

Slagle, Rollins & Hughes, Sherman, for respondent.

CULVER, Justice.

This workmen's compensation case presents the question as to whether or not the injury sustained by the respondent-plaintiff, Jackson, was received in the course of his employment. This issue having been resolved favorably to the respondent, he recovered compensation in the trial court and that judgment was affirmed. 288 S.W.2d 149.

Under the facts in this case which are without material dispute, it is our opinion that the respondent was, as a matter of law, not within the course of his employment when he received the injury complained of. Therefore, the judgments of the courts below must be reversed.

A contracting company employed respondent as a mechanic to repair trucks and other machinery used in road construction. Respondent preferred to use his own light truck for transporting his and the employer's tools in traveling back and forth along the stretch of highway in the performance of his duties, rather than the truck owned by the company that was available for his use. The employer agreed to furnish oil and gas for the truck, but was not paying respondent any consideration for the use of the truck. Respondent's hours were usually eight hours a day five and one-half days a week. On Saturday noon, the day prior to the injury, respondent and all other employees quit work and were not to report again until Monday morning. He was not paid for any time or services rendered after that Saturday noon. On the way home respondent's truck broke an axle and assisted by a neighbor he pulled it on home with his tractor. He later purchased a new part and on the following (Sunday) morning while attempting, with the assistance of his son, to replace the broken axle the truck slipped from its supports and inflicted the injury.

The respondent theorizes that while the accident happened on Sunday and at a time when respondent was not supposed to be at work, nonetheless in attempting to repair the truck so that he could report for duty on Monday morning and transport his tools, together with some that belonged to his employer, back to the job, he was furthering the interests of his employer and was, therefore, engaged in the course of that employment.

While there is imposed upon the courts the duty of construing the compensation law liberally in favor of employees and though it is recognized that no plain, clear and distinct line of demarcation can be drawn applicable to all facts and situations, yet we have found no case where the provisions of the compensation law have been extended so as to cover an employee under the undisputed facts as shown in the record here.

In Jones v. Casualty Reciprocal Exchange, Tex.Civ.App., 250 S.W. 1073, 1074, wr. ref., a case cited by the respondent, it is correctly said that the determination of whether an injury arises within the course of employment depends upon whether or not the facts bring the case within the purview of the act. Continuing the court says that the law allows compensation: '(1) Where the injury arises out of or is actually caused by the special work or job for which the employee was engaged, provided it happened or was received by the employee during the period of working hours or time required or authorized by the terms of the contract of employment; or (2) where the injury has relation to the work for which the employee was engaged, provided it happened or was received by the employee during the period of time that such employee was required or authorized by the terms of the contract of employment to be actually about or in furtherance of his employer's work or business.' This statement correctly interprets the law.

In the Jones case compensation was allowed. The employer had arranged for certain employees to be carried in a company truck to and from their homes during the lunch hour. The employee there was held to be in the course of his employment while riding in the company truck because this method of transportation was arranged by the company for convenience of all concerned and in the interest of expediting the work. Likewise in another case relied on by respondent, Novack v. Montgomery Ward & Co., 158 Minn. 495, 198 N.W. 290, the employee was entitled to compensation, having been injured on an elevator on the premises of her employer and after she had entered for the purpose of her employment. These cases furnish little comfort or support for respondent's theory.

We do not disagree with the decisions in Maryland Casualty Co. v. Smith, Tex.Civ.App., 40 S.W.2d 913, and Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. v. Nelson, 142 Tex. 370, 178 S.W.2d 514, 516, but the facts in both of those two cases differ materially and are more favorable to the employee. In the Maryland...