Davis v. Consolidated Rail Corp.

442 N.E.2d 1310 · Ohio Court of Appeals · 1981

Facts

Billy Davis, a Ford employee, was injured by a falling boxcar door at Ford's plant while working on a Conrail boxcar. Davis sued Conrail, which then filed a third-party complaint against Ford seeking indemnification under a 'sidetrack agreement.' Ford moved for summary judgment, asserting employer immunity under Ohio workers' compensation law.

Issue

Did the trial court err in granting summary judgment to Ford, finding that the 'sidetrack agreement' did not constitute an express waiver of Ford's constitutional and statutory immunity from indemnification claims by Conrail?

Holding

No, the trial court did not err. The court affirmed summary judgment for Ford, holding that the general indemnification clause in the sidetrack agreement was insufficient to waive Ford's employer immunity.

Rule

An employer complying with Ohio workers' compensation law is immune from third-party indemnification claims for employee injuries, and this constitutional and statutory immunity can only be waived by an express and specific waiver, not by general indemnification language.

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Case brief last reviewed 2026-01-08. Prepared by CaseReader from the published opinion.