Walker

MEMORANDUM **

The victim of a workplace accident, Donald Walker, brought suit against the franchisor of the commercial fueling station where he worked. The franchisor, Pacific Pride Services, Inc., moved for summary judgment, asserting that it was not liable for the accident because the franchisee, SF Petroleum, Inc., was an independent contractor as a matter of law. The district court granted the motion for summary-judgment. Walker’s appeal concerns whether issues of disputed fact remain as to whether the franchisor-franchisee relationship was actually a principal-agent relationship, in which case the franchisor could be found liable for the victim’s injuries. We assume the parties’ familiarity with the facts and the record of prior proceedings, to which we refer only as necessary to explain our decision. For the reasons given below, we now affirm the district court’s order granting summary judgment.

At issue is whether the district court could determine as a matter of law that no agency relationship between Pacific Pride and SF Petroleum existed on the basis of the franchise agreement. The agency determination can be made as a matter of law when the essential facts are not…