Borne v. Estate of T. L. Carraway, Jr.

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An underground culvert system failed and caused a large sinkhole behind the Carraway residence. The culvert system drains Eastover Lake, which is owned by the surrounding property owners (collectively, "the Lake Owner Defendants") and maintained by the Eastover Lake Association (ELA). T.L. Carraway Jr. filed suit against the Lake Owner Defendants and ELA. The Lake Owner Defendants and ELA filed third-party complaints for indemnity against the City of Jackson, alleging that the City's sewer-line repairs had caused the sinkhole. The chancellor found the Lake Owner Defendants, ELA, and the City jointly and severally liable for the repair. The Lake Owner Defendants, ELA, and the City appealed. Upon review, the Supreme Court affirmed in part, finding that the issues raised by the Lake Owner Defendants and ELA were without merit, except that the chancellor erred by ordering joint and several liability. The Court reversed and remanded for apportionment of liability in accordance with Mississippi Code Section 85-5-7 (Rev. 2011). The City correctly argued that, because the chancellor rejected the indemnity claims brought by the Lake Owner Defendants and ELA against the City, there was no basis for the chancellor's apportionment of liability to the City. Therefore, the Court reversed the chancellor's apportionment of liability to the City and rendered judgment in favor of the City. View "Borne v. Estate of T. L. Carraway, Jr." on Justia Law