Murray v. Ramada Inns, Inc.

Rule of Law:

The common law doctrine of assumption of risk is abolished in Louisiana tort law and is subsumed by the comparative fault system. A plaintiff's awareness of a risk created by a defendant's fault does not operate as a total bar to recovery but instead is considered a factor in apportioning fault under Louisiana Civil Code article 2323.

Facts:

• On July 30, 1983, Gregory Murray and his two brothers began doing shallow water dives in a swimming pool at a Ramada Inn Motel in Shreveport.
• The motel pool had no lifeguard on duty, which was a violation of the Louisiana Sanitary Code.
• There were no signs in the pool area that warned against diving into the shallow end, although the motel had previously removed the diving board to curtail diving.
• A sign near the pool stated 'NO LIFE GUARD—SWIM AT OWN RISK.'
• Murray knew how to dive and had told his brother that shallow water diving was dangerous, warning his brothers to 'be careful' shortly before his accident.
• After making two successful dives, Murray performed a third dive and struck his head on the bottom of the pool.
• Murray suffered instant paralysis from the impact and died from his injuries five months later.

Procedural Posture:

• Clementine Murray and Carmen R. Wright, on behalf of Gregory Murray's son, filed a wrongful death action in federal district court against Ramada Inns, Inc. and related corporate entities.
• At trial, the defendants requested a jury instruction on assumption of risk as a complete bar to recovery.
• The trial judge denied this request, ruling that the defense had been superseded by Louisiana's comparative negligence statute.
• The jury returned a verdict finding the swimming pool presented an unreasonable risk of harm and that Gregory Murray was also negligent.
• The jury assessed Murray's negligence at 50% and awarded damages, which were then reduced by half.
• Defendants, as appellants, appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
• Finding Louisiana law on the issue unsettled, the Fifth Circuit certified the question of the status of the assumption of risk defense to the Supreme Court of Louisiana.