ALENE'S ENTERPRISES, INC., APPELLANT,
v.
ROBERT EARLY AND THE AETNA CASUALTY AND SURETY COMPANY, APPELLEES; THE AETNA CASUALTY AND SURETY COMPANY, APPELLANT, V. ROBERT EARLY, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
The court held that there was no evidence to support a finding that the defendant's alleged negligence was the proximate cause of the plaintiff's injuries.
The plaintiff was injured when a glass tabletop he was attempting to throw away broke and cut his arm. The plaintiff alleged the defendant was neglige…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Directed Verdict cases and more on FLexlaw
SMITH, FREDRICKA G., Associate Judge.
In this consolidated appeal, Alene’s Enterprises, Inc. (Alene’s), and its liability insurer, The Aetna Casualty and Surety Company (Aetna), challenge the trial court’s denial of their motions for directed verdict and subsequent entry of judgment upon the jury verdict for Robert Early. Finding that there is no evidence upon which the jury could determine that Alene’s was guilty of negligence which caused or contributed to Early’s injuries, we reverse.
Early was hired by Alene’s to assist in preparing a new tool rental store for its opening. While he was attempting to throw away a glass table top that had been chipped earlier that day, the glass broke and fell onto Early’s forearm causing lacerations.
Early maintained that Alene’s was negligent in asking him to throw away the piece of glass knowing that the back door of the dumpster was closed and that any garbage would have to be thrown over the top of the dumpster. Although there is evidence to support Early’s contention that the glass broke while he was lifting the glass to throw it in the dumpster, there is no evidence to indicate what caused the glass to crack. Therefore, there is no basis upon which to conclude that Alene’s instructions, even if negligent, were the proximate cause of damage to Early. Courtney v. American Oil Co., 220 So. 2d 675 (Fla. 4th DCA 1968), cert. denied 225 So. 2d 919 (Fla.1969); Pope v. Cruise Boat Co., 380 So. 2d 1151 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980).
Having determined that the trial court should have entered a directed verdict for Alene’s Enterprises on the negligence issues, we do not reach the other points raised by Alene’s concerning Early’s employment status.
ANSTEAD and WALDEN, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Linda Gale Pope et vir. v. Cruise Boat Co., Inc., 380 So. 2d 1151 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980)
- Cousins Assocs., Inc. v. Cousins, 380 So. 2d 1151 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980)
- Courtney v. The Am. OIL Co., 220 So. 2d 675 (Fla. 4th DCA 1968)
- Commercial Constr. Co. v. Fla. Bond & Mortg. Co., 220 So. 2d 675 (Fla. 4th DCA 1969)
- Bethel v. State, 225 So. 2d 919 (Fla. 1969)
- City of Winter Park v. Shealor, 225 So. 2d 919 (Fla. 1969)