Michael

In this worksite accident case, plaintiff David Michael, a truck driver hauling hazardous waste, appeals from a summary judgment in favor of defendants Denbeste Transportation, Inc. (a hazardous waste hauler subcontractor and Michael’s hirer), Chemical Waste Management, Inc. (CWM) (a hazardous waste handler and Denbeste’s hirer), Aman Environmental Construction, Inc. (Aman) (the general contractor for the demolition work on the site and CWM’s hirer), and Secor International, Inc. (a consultant hired by the owner of the site, but not the hirer of Michael or the other defendants).

In a line of cases from Privette v. Superior Court (1993) 5 Cal.4th 689 [ 21 Cal.Rptr.2d 72 , 854 P.2d 721 ] (Privette) to Kinsman v. Unocal Corp. (2005) 37 Cal.4th 659 [ 36 Cal.Rptr.3d 495 , 123 P.3d 931 ] (Kinsman), our Supreme Court, in a body of law known as the Privette doctrine, has defined the circumstances under which an injured worker who is an employee of an independent contractor may sue the hirer of that contractor. This case presents the first impression issue of whether the Privette doctrine applies where the injured plaintiff is not an employee, but an independent contractor, of…