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Keywords

lawsuittortplaintiffdefendantdamagesliabilitytrialsummary judgmentburden of proof
tortplaintiffdefendantliabilitytrialmotionsummary judgment

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Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency v. Jackson, 333 Conn. 206, 214 A.3d 841

Facts

On June 2, 2012, the defendants, all teenagers, entered an abandoned mill in Somers, Connecticut, where they smoked cigarettes and discarded the butts without extinguishing them. Shortly after they left, the mill was engulfed in flames, destroying both the mill and a public sewage line. The Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency, as subrogee of the town, filed a lawsuit against the defendants for the damages incurred, claiming their negligent disposal of cigarettes caused the fire. The trial court granted summary judgment for the defendants, stating the plaintiff could not prove which defendant's cigarette caused the fire.

The plaintiff, Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency, as subrogee of its insured, the town of Somers (town), brought this action against the defendants, Christopher Jackson, Wesley Hall, and Erin Houle, claiming that their negligent disposal of cigarettes inside an abandoned, privately owned mill in the town ignited a fire that destroyed both the mill and a public, aboveground sewage line in the basement of the mill.

Issue

Whether the trial court erred in granting summary judgment to the defendants by not applying the alternative liability doctrine, which shifts the burden of proof to the defendants when multiple parties may have caused the harm.

The trial court granted the defendants' motions for summary judgment on the ground that the plaintiff could not establish which of the defendants' cigarettes had sparked the blaze and, therefore, could not establish causation, an essential element of its cause of action.

Rule

Under the alternative liability doctrine, when the conduct of two or more actors is tortious, and it is proved that harm has been caused to the plaintiff by only one of them, but there is uncertainty as to which one has caused it, the burden is upon each such actor to prove that he has not caused the harm.

That rule provides that, when 'the conduct of two or more actors is tortious, and it is proved that harm has been caused to the plaintiff by only one of them, but there is uncertainty as to which one has caused it, the burden is upon each such actor to prove that he has not caused the harm.'

Analysis

The court determined that the plaintiff met the requirements for the alternative liability doctrine, as all defendants acted negligently and their conduct was substantially simultaneous, creating the same risk of harm. The court rejected the defendants' arguments that the plaintiff needed to prove additional requirements, such as that only one defendant could have caused the harm or that the defendants had better access to information about causation. The court emphasized the unfairness of allowing multiple tortfeasors to escape liability simply because the plaintiff could not pinpoint which one caused the harm.

The three requirements for application of the alternative liability doctrine are satisfied in the present case. The plaintiff has adduced evidence demonstrating that all three of the defendants acted negligently in the manner in which they disposed of their cigarettes in the mill, that all possible tortfeasors have been named as defendants, and that the tortious conduct of those defendants was substantially simultaneous in time and of the same character so as to give rise to the same risk of harm.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court reversed the trial court's decision and remanded the case, allowing the plaintiff to proceed under the alternative liability doctrine.

We therefore agree with the plaintiff that we must reverse the trial court's decision to grant the defendants' motions for summary judgment and that the plaintiff is entitled to the benefit of the alternative liability doctrine for the purpose of proving its case at trial.

Who won?

Connecticut Interlocal Risk Management Agency prevailed because the court recognized the applicability of the alternative liability doctrine, which allowed them to shift the burden of proof to the defendants.

The plaintiff compensated the town for the loss of the sewage line and, subsequently, commenced the present subrogation action against the defendants to recover the cost of replacing the sewage line.

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