DORGE v. Martin
905 N. E. 2d 327, 388 Ill. App. 3d 863 (2009)
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Rule of Law:
The scope of a legal duty voluntarily undertaken is limited by the extent of that undertaking; a person who volunteers to coordinate one aspect of an event does not assume a duty of care for the overall safety of the event, which they do not organize or control.
Facts:
- The Burnham Harbor Yacht Club (the club) organized an annual sailboat race, naming the 2002 event the Kaz Regatta and using it as a fund-raiser for breast cancer research.
- The Chicago Women’s Sailing Network (CWSN), an informal group, helped organize the fund-raising aspect of the race.
- Alice Martin, a CWSN member, volunteered to coordinate the 'sail-along' portion, which involved matching donors with participating sailboats.
- Martin's role included soliciting skippers, drafting and distributing a flyer, and matching donors to boats based on their sailing experience.
- Carol Dorge, who had some prior but limited sailing experience, expressed interest in participating as a donor.
- Martin matched Dorge with the 'Coup d’Etat,' a large 47-foot yacht, after informing its skipper, Ron Elsasser, that Dorge was inexperienced.
- On race day, Elsasser provided a safety briefing to his crew and guests, including Dorge.
- During the race's first tacking maneuver, a line attached to the jib sail became entangled around Dorge's arm, crushing it as the sail filled with wind.
Procedural Posture:
- Carol Dorge filed a personal injury lawsuit against multiple parties, including Alice Martin, in the circuit court (trial court).
- Dorge's complaint alleged that Martin was negligent in her capacity as an organizer of the sailing event.
- Martin moved for summary judgment, arguing she owed no duty of care to Dorge.
- The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of Martin.
- Dorge (appellant) appealed the trial court's grant of summary judgment to Martin (appellee) to the Illinois Appellate Court.
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Issue:
Does a volunteer who coordinates matching participants with boats for a fundraising race, but does not organize or control the race itself, owe a duty of care to a participant for injuries sustained during the race that are unrelated to the volunteer's matching function?
Opinions:
Majority - Justice Karnezis
No. A volunteer who coordinates one aspect of a fundraising event does not owe a general duty of care to participants for the overall safety of the event. The court rejected the argument that Martin was an organizer or sponsor of the race, finding that the yacht club retained those roles. Martin was merely a volunteer contact person coordinating one fundraising component. The court then analyzed the voluntary undertaking doctrine, holding that the scope of a duty is limited by the extent of the undertaking. Martin's undertaking was confined to matching donors with appropriate boats. She fulfilled this limited duty by placing Dorge, an inexperienced sailor, on a large boat with an experienced skipper and informing the skipper of Dorge's inexperience. The court found that Dorge's injury was not a reasonably foreseeable result of Martin's limited actions, and that no special relationship existed to create a broader duty.
Analysis:
This decision clarifies the scope of the voluntary undertaking doctrine as it applies to volunteers for sporting or charitable events. It establishes that a volunteer's duty is narrowly tailored to the specific tasks they agree to perform, protecting them from broad liability for aspects of an event they do not control. This precedent is significant for non-profit and community organizations, as it encourages volunteerism by limiting the legal risks associated with helping to coordinate events. Future negligence cases against event volunteers will likely focus heavily on defining the precise extent of the volunteer's undertaking to determine the scope of their legal duty.
