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Marcoux v. Parker Hannifin/Nichols Portland Division9/19/2005
Reporter of Decisions
Argued: June 15, 2005
Panel: SAUFLEY, C.J., and CLIFFORD, DANA, ALEXANDER, CALKINS, and LEVY, JJ.
[ ] This action for negligence arises from an injury suffered by Christine Marcoux at the premises of Parker Hannifin/Nichols Portland Division (Nichols). Marcoux was an on-site coordinator at Nichols for Kelly Services (Kelly), a staffing company that provided temporary employment services to Nichols. Nichols appeals from the Superior Court's (Cumberland County, Cole, J.) denial of its motion for a summary judgment, asserting that the court erred in finding that genuine issues of material fact exist with respect to whether (1) it is entitled to immunity from Marcoux's suit pursuant to section 104 of the Maine Workers' Compensation Act, 39-A M.R.S.A. §§ 101-409 (2001 & Supp. 2004), and (2) Marcoux established the essential elements of a premises liability action. We affirm the denial of Nichols's summary judgment motion.
I. BACKGROUND
[ ] Nichols is a high-tech manufacturing and production company located in Portland. Kelly, a staffing company, furnishes assorted employment services to its customers, including Nichols. The incident that precipitated Marcoux's suit occurred on August 9, 1999, which was a payroll day at Nichols. Marcoux was employed as a full-time service manager for Kelly, serving as an on-site coordinator for the Kelly temporary employees assigned to Nichols's plant. One of Marcoux's payroll-related duties was verifying the temporary Kelly employees' hours with the appropriate Nichols supervisors.
[ ] That morning, Marcoux began making her rounds to the supervisors. The route that Marcoux took brought her down an aisle that ran past production machines. Marcoux saw two people talking to each other in the aisle, one of whom wore a Nichols maintenance uniform. After passing the two people, Marcoux neared a particular machine and noticed, to her right, a green stain on the floor by the machine and, to her left, a bucket without any mops in it. The stain was liquid and was about the size of a "small serving plate." To avoid the stain, Marcoux walked between the stain and the bucket. She lost her footing and fell.
[ ] Kelly had secured the payment of workers' compensation benefits for its employees. Marcoux filed a first report of injury for a workers' compensation claim with Kelly in September of 1999, and she currently receives workers' compensation benefits for her injuries stemming from the fall. In August 2003, Marcoux brought this negligence action against Nichols. Nichols denied the allegations in the complaint and filed a motion for a summary judgment based on the statutorily provided grant of immunity related to the securing of workers' compensation coverage. This appeal followed the Superior Court's denial of its summary judgment motion.
II. DISCUSSION
A. Standard of Review
[ ] "We review a ruling on a motion for summary judgment de novo, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, to decide whether the parties' statements of material fact and referenced record evidence reveal a genuine issue of material fact." Rice v. City of Biddeford, 2004 ME 128, 9, 861 A.2d 668, 670.
B. Employer Immunity Under 39-A M.R.S.A. § 104
[ ] The immunity and exclusivity provisions of the Workers' Compensation Act provide that if an employer has secured the payment of workers' compensation for its employees, it is immune from suit for personal injuries resulting from work-related injuries, and the employee "is deemed to have waived [his or her] right of action at common law and under section 104 t
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