Justia Kentucky Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeals affirming the circuit court's grant of summary judgment to Big Sandy Area Development District, Inc. (BSADD) in this negligence and wrongful death action, holding that BSADD did not have governmental immunity but that the trial court properly granted summary judgment on the merits of Plaintiff's claims against BSADD.BSADD arranges for assistants to visit elderly clients in their homes on a regular basis. After Emma Jean Hall died of the effects of sepsis that developed from a bed sore on her lower back, Plaintiff, in her capacity as the executrix of Hall's estate, brought this action alleging that Hall's condition could have been found and remedied had BSADD's home care aid not been negligently attentive. The trial court granted BSADD's motion for summary judgment, concluding that BSADD enjoyed governmental immunity. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed but on different grounds, holding (1) BSADD did not have governmental immunity because it did not perform an integral state function; and (2) BSADD was entitled to judgment as a matter of law on the substance of the negligence claim because it did not breach of standard of care to Hall. View "Howard v. Big Sandy Area Development District, Inc." on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals dismissing Upper Pond Creek Volunteer Fire Department, Inc.'s appeal of the trial court's denial of its motion to dismiss a portion of Plaintiffs' claims until material facts could be developed in discovery, holding that the court of appeals properly concluded that it lacked appellate jurisdiction.Ronnie and Amanda Kinser filed this complaint alleging that the fire department was negligent in providing assistance to Ronnie and in hiring, training, supervising, and retaining its employees. Pond Creek filed a motion to dismiss, asserting governmental immunity under Ky. Rev. Stat. 75.070. The circuit court granted the motion. The Kinsers filed a motion to alter, amend, or vacate, arguing that section 75.070 does not expressly apply to their claims for negligent hiring and training. The circuit court granted the Kinsers 120 days to conduct discovery regarding the immunity of the fire department and its employees and then sustained the motion to alter, amend, or vacate as to the negligent hiring and training claims. The court of appeals dismissed Pond Creek's appeal for lack of jurisdiction, concluding that the interlocutory order was not immediately appealable. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that this was an improper interlocutory appeal. View "Upper Pond Creek Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. v. Kinser" on Justia Law

In this lawsuit brought against Johnson & Johnson, Inc. and other entities (collectively, Defendants) alleging state tort claims due to injuries caused by a Class III medical device the Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the trial court granting Defendants' motion for judgment on the pleadings based on federal preemption of all claims, holding that, under Kentucky's notice pleading standards, the motion for judgment on the pleadings should have been denied.In their complaint, Plaintiffs asserted claims for, inter alia, strict liability negligence, and lack of informed consent. Defendants moved for judgment on the pleadings based on federal preemption of all claims. The trial court granted the motion and dismissed all of Plaintiffs' claims. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that, under Kentucky's notice pleading standard, Plaintiffs' complaint sufficiently put Defendants on notice of parallel claims under Kentucky law that may not be preempted. View "Russell v. Johnson & Johnson Inc." on Justia Law

The Supreme Court certified that sovereign immunity as to monetary damages was waived neither as to the KRFRA nor in conjunction with Ky. Rev. Stat. 446.070 in this case.Plaintiff was arrested while protesting and was booked and photographed by Metro Police. When photographing Plaintiff, Metro officers allegedly ordered Plaintiff to remove her headscarf. On that basis, Plaintiff alleged a state claim under KRFRA. The Supreme Court granted the United States District Court, Western District of Kentucky's request for certification of law as to whether the General Assembly waived sovereign immunity from suit in the Kentucky Religious Freedom Restoration Act (KRFRA) and whether the use of Ky. Rev. Stat. 446.070 to seek redress for violations of the underlying statute nonetheless entitled government Metro to immunity from suit. The Supreme Court held that KRFRA's absence of an explicit waiver of sovereign immunity and section 446.070's lack of authority to waive sovereign immunity was apparent from the language of both statutes. View "Ruplinger v. Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals and Workers' Compensation Board affirming the determination of the Chief Administrative Law Judge (CALJ) denying Appellant's motion to reopen his workers' compensation claim as time barred, holding that the CALJ correctly denied Appellant's motion to reopen as untimely.In 1996 and 1997, Appellant incurred work-related injuries to his right and left shoulders. Income benefits were paid for his right shoulder injury, but no mention of the left shoulder injury appeared in the settlement agreement. In 2018, Appellant moved to reopen the left shoulder claim, asserting that he was entitled to income benefits based on a recent surgery and resulting increased impairment. The CALJ denied the motion. The Board and the court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Appellant's motion was untimely. View "Slaughter v. Tube Turns" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court reversed the opinion of the court of appeals affirming the decision of the Board of Trustees of the Kentucky Retirement Systems denying Edward Elder's application for disability retirement benefits, holding that the circuit court and the court of appeals misinterpreted this Court's holding in Kentucky Retirement Systems v. West, 413 S.W.3d 578 (Ky. 2013).Elder applied for disability retirement benefits due to a genetic disorder. Systems denied benefits because Elder submitted no pre-employment medical records. In affirming Systems' denial of benefits, the circuit court read West to require submission of pre-employment medical records to prove a disabling condition was asymptomatic and reasonably undiscoverable prior to hiring. The court of appeals affirmed the circuit court's reading of West and its denial of Elder's claim for disability retirement benefits. The Supreme Court reversed and remanded the case, holding that West imposed no requirement that a claimant submit pre-employment records to disprove the pre-existence of his genetic disorder. View "Elder v. Kentucky Retirement Systems" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals affirming the ruling of the trial court granting summary judgment for Insurer on Plaintiff's action seeking a declaration that Insurer was obligated to prove underinsured motorist (UIM) benefits under the terms of a commercial policy, holding that Plaintiff was not covered under the terms of the commercial UIM policy in this case.Plaintiff was a member of an LLC that bought a commercial automobile insurance policy from Insurer. Insurer included UIM coverage for the LLC's vehicles. Plaintiff was walking through the parking lot of a store where she had just purchased items for the LLC and was struck by an automobile. The driver of the vehicle was an underinsured motorist. Plaintiff submitted a UIM claim to Insurer. After Insurer denied the claim Plaintiff filed this declaratory action. The trial court granted summary judgment for Insurer, and the court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the trial court correctly found there were no issues as to any material fact and that Insurer was entitled to judgment as a matter of law. View "Metzger v. Auto-Owners Insurance Co." on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals affirming the decision of the circuit court excluding from evidence a Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and granting a directed verdict in favor of Neurosurgical Institute of Kentucky, P.S.C., holding that any error committed by the trial court was harmless.Plaintiff, in his capacity as administrator of the decedent's estate and in his individual capacity, filed a medical negligence suit against Defendants, a private neurosurgery practice, a neurosurgical resident, a hospital, and other medical professionals. During discovery, the hospital filed a motion in liming to exclude the RCA report as a subsequent remedial measure under Ky. R. Evid. 407. The trial court granted the motion. After a trial, the court granted a directed verdict in favor of the defendants. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the trial court erred in excluding the RCA under Rule 407, but the error was harmless; (2) the court of appeals' Rule 407 analysis was not improper, and the RCA was properly excluded under Ky. R. Evid. 403; and (3) the trial court did not err in excluding the RCA when offered for impeachment purposes. View "Thomas v. University Medical Center, Inc." on Justia Law

In this action brought against a long-term care facility by Kenneth, as administrator of Estate of Tommy Patton, the Supreme Court reversed in part the court of appeals' decision concluding that an arbitration agreement was enforceable as to Kenneth's individual wrongful death claim but that the agreement was not enforceable as to the Estate's claims, holding that the agreement was valid as to both claims.Kenneth signed an arbitration agreement at the time his father, Tommy, was admitted to Signature HealthCARE of East Louisville's long-term care facility. Tommy later suffered a fall and died a few weeks later. Kenneth brought sued Signature, alleging negligence and wrongful death. Signature filed a motion to compel arbitration. The trial court denied the motion in its entirety. The court of appeals reversed in part, concluding that the arbitration agreement was not enforceable against the Estate but that Kenneth's wrongful death claim was arbitrable because he executed the arbitration agreement in his individual capacity. The Supreme Court reversed in part, holding that both the Estate's and Kenneth's individual claims were subject to arbitration because the arbitration agreement was valid and enforceable as to the Estate claim and as to Kenneth's individual wrongful death claim. View "LP Louisville East, LLC v. Patton" on Justia Law

The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals affirming the judgment of the trial court dismissing as untimely Tracie Williams' complaint against Katelin Hawkins as the administratrix of the estate of Charlotte Hawkins, holding that no extraordinary circumstance justified deviating from the routine application of the statute of limitations.In March 2015, Williams was injured in a two-vehicle accident with Charlotte. Charlotte died in October 2015. Williams, however, did not discover Charlotte's death until one day prior to the expiration of the statute of limitations in March 2017. When Williams filed her initial complaint against Charlotte the trial court dismissed it as a legal nullity because the court could not have jurisdiction over a deceased individual. After Katelin was appointed as administratrix, a new complaint was filed against Katelin in May 2017. The trial court dismissed the complaint because it was not filed within the two-year limitations period. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) no extraordinary circumstances existed to justify equitable tolling; and (2) equitable estoppel was inapplicable. View "Williams v. Hawkins" on Justia Law