NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Legal Newsline) - Trader Joe's has lost a court decision in Tennessee that will have implications for other corporations fighting personal injury lawsuits.
The court sided for a slip-and-fall plaintiff on April 8, refusing to dismiss negligent training and supervision claims. Plaintiff Melissa Binns drew support from the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, while the American Trucking Associations and Tennessee Trucking Association supported Trader Joe's.
The company wanted to argue those types of claims couldn't be asserted concurrently with a premises liability claim. It also sought to pursue the "preemption rule" to stop those claims, claiming they couldn't be pursued when the defendant admits it is vicariously liable for the conduct of an employee.
The preemption rule conflicts with the state's comparative fault rules, the court said.
"We agree that under the preemption rule, a rational employer would certainly wish to avoid being vicariously liable for any negligent conduct of their employees," Justice Roger Page wrote.
"However, even though employers are still incentivized to provide adequate training and supervision under the preemption rule, the rule still carries a risk of the fact finder apportioning a greater percentage of fault to the plaintiff or a second defendant, as explained above.
"Furthermore, the preemption rule would allow especially-blameworthy employers to prevent egregious evidence of negligent training and supervision from being considered by the fact finder.
"Permitting employers to prevent the admission of this type of evidence does not serve the goal of deterrence in tort law."
A Trader Joe's employee allegedly negligently loaded a cart in a disorganized fashion when stocking shelves of the store's "fresh aisle." A package of tofu containing a clear liquid fell and spilled, the suit says.
The employee picked up the package but didn't clean the floor, leaving the spill unattended while she went retrieve a wet floor sign. Binns slipped in the meantime and sued Trader Joe's.
Trader Joe's admitted it was vicariously liable for the employee's actions, hoping to stop the negligent training and supervision claims.
"(I)t is more than conceivable that eliminating the employer’s alleged direct negligence from the jury’s consideration may result in a plaintiff or additional defendant being allocated a greater percentage of fault," the decision says.
"For these reasons, we consider the preemption rule to be in conflict with the basic principles of Tennessee’s system of modified comparative fault."