Beaudoin v. Texaco, Inc.
653 F. Supp. 512 · District Court, D. North Dakota · 1987
Facts
Mark Beaudoin, an employee of Wood Wireline, was struck in the eye by a wire while setting up equipment at an unlighted Texaco well site, resulting in legal blindness. A jury found damages of $44,057.04 and apportioned negligence as 60% to Wood Wireline (immune employer), 30% to Beaudoin, and 10% to Texaco. Beaudoin sued Texaco for negligence.
Issue
The legal question is whether North Dakota's comparative negligence statute requires comparing the plaintiff's negligence to each individual defendant (Wisconsin rule) or to the combined negligence of all other negligent actors, including an immune employer (unit rule). This determination affects whether Beaudoin can recover damages from Texaco.
Holding
The court held that the 'unit rule' applies, aggregating the negligence of all other negligent parties (Texaco and Wood Wireline) for comparison with the plaintiff's negligence. Since Beaudoin's 30% negligence was less than the combined 70% negligence of Texaco and Wireline, he could recover, and Texaco was held jointly and severally liable for 70% of the damages.
Rule
The court adopted the 'unit rule' for North Dakota's comparative negligence statute, which dictates that a plaintiff's negligence is compared to the sum of the negligence of all other negligent actors, including statutorily immune employers. If the plaintiff's negligence is less than this combined sum, recovery is permitted, and remaining defendants are jointly and severally liable for the total non-plaintiff negligence.
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