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Courtless v. Jolliffe

West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals

507 S.E.2d 136 (1998)

Facts

David Cliff Joliffe (defendant) was driving to work when he hit a bicyclist, Bobby Courtless (plaintiff), paralyzing him. Joliffe was employed by Princess Beverly Coal Company (Princess) (defendant), and at the time of the accident, Joliffe was driving from his home to a Princess mine site, but he had stopped to get shock absorbers for the truck he was driving. The truck belonged to Joliffe, but Princess paid Joliffe for the truck’s monthly payments as well as the maintenance and repair costs and allowed Joliffe to get gas from Princess gas tanks as often as he needed. In exchange, Joliffe used the truck during his work at the Princess mine sites. Courtless sued Joliffe and Princess for his injuries, alleging that Princess was vicariously liable for Joliffe’s negligence in causing the accident. The trial court granted Princess’s motion for summary judgment, holding that Joliffe was not acting within the scope of his employment and that no exception to the going-and-coming rule applied. Courtless appealed.

Rule of Law

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Issue

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Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)

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