Hugo Black

“ I agree, of course, that if the employer here had made a contract, oral or written, agreeing to hold this shipowner harmless or to indemnify the shipowner against liability for injuries to petitioner's employees caused by the shipowner's negligence in whole or in part, the contract would have been valid and indemnity could have been obtained. For the Longshoremen's Act does not forbid employers under it to make independent agreements to indemnify others. ”

“ In other words, the employee who had accepted compensation must go into court to protect himself against his employer before he goes into court to protect his claim against a third party who has negligently injured him. ”

“ Under no circumstances were they to be held liable to their own employees for more than the compensation clearly fixed in the Act. Thus employers were given every reason to believe they could buy their insurance and make other business arrangements on the basis of the limited Compensation Act liability. More than that, § 33 of the Act also provides that for compensation paid an employee an employer shall himself be reimbursed or indemnified out of any money collected as a result of an employee's claim for negligent injury by a third person. ”

“ It took away from longshoremen the right to sue their employers for negligence and substituted a fixed schedule of compensation for injuries regardless of fault. Many workers and employers opposed the compensation scheme. The workers deplored loss of their chance to get big tort verdicts. But Congress thought it best to give them a more certain and less expensive recovery, even though far less in amount than some tort recoveries might be. Many employers preferred to take their chance on defeating employees' damage suits under the old tort system. ”

“ Employees like Sieracki and Palazzolo will find it practically impossible to get their cases for injuries against third persons tried in a court. And a shipowner who wants to shift liability wholly to a stevedoring company can do so by a very simple method. He can allege that the stevedoring company intentionally made a contract agreeing to indemnify him under circumstances like those in this case ”

“ These memorandums contained a simple agreement to do the stevedoring for an agreed compensation plus, in some circumstances, cost of the stevedore's insurance. There was nothing further from which it could possibly be inferred that Ryan would be under a duty to indemnify the shipowner for losses resulting from any negligent stowage by Ryan's employees. To prevent injuries to cargo, crew and longshoremen, it is necessary and customary to put some kind of props or supports under or against the heavy pulp rolls to keep them stationary until such time as they are unloaded. ”

“ But this Court relies on contractual indemnity.↑ Even though the question of unseaworthiness was also submitted to the jury, it depended wholly upon whether there was negligent stowage. Under the undisputed testimony of the ship's officer the jury and judge had to find that the shipowner was guilty of negligence if the stevedore was. Moreover, if the shipowner failed to provide the proper gear in the way of chocks or lumber, the shipowner was guilty of negligence whether the stevedore was or not. ”

“ An employer like Ryan will hereafter know that if he or his employee prosecutes a claim against a third party and obtains a judgment for the employee's benefit, every dime of the judgment will have to be paid by the employer himself. ”

“ The shipowner answered denying the allegations of negligence and unseaworthiness. At the same time the shipowner filed a complaint of its own against Ryan, the stevedore, alleging that any injury Palazzolo had received was solely attributable to the negligent manner in which the stevedore's employees had stowed the rolls of pulp. On this basis the shipowner asked the court to compel the stevedore to reimburse the shipowner for any judgment Palazzolo might obtain against the shipowner. Palazzolo's case against the shipowner was submitted to a jury ”

“ I have set out the evidence in some detail because I think it shows almost beyond doubt that this stevedoring company is being required to pay a $75,000 verdict 'on account of' injuries to an employee received in the line of that employee's duties. This is at least $60,000 more than it would have to pay under the Longshoremen's Act. ”