In Missouri, an injured employee will rarely be able to bring a civil case against a negligent co-employee, after the Missouri Supreme Court's decision in Brock . Dunne.

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Jill S. Bollwerk Attorney At Law Jill has handled countless jury trials, bench trials, workers compensation hearings, and Social Security hearings, and she has briefed and argued many... Read More +

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In 2012, the legislature amended section 287.120.1 of the workers’ compensation statute providing immunity for employees from liability to fellow employees arising out of injuries occurring in the workplace. The relevant portion of the statute (§ 287.120.1) states: Any employee of such employer shall not be liable for any injury ... and ... shall be released from all other liability whatsoever ... except that an employee shall not be released from liability for injury or death if the employee engaged in an affirmative negligent act that purposefully and dangerously caused or increased the risk of injury.

The Missouri Supreme Court concluded that Section 287.120.1 does not preempt the common law claim and create a new statutory cause of action for co-employees to bring against their culpable co-workers. Additionally, the court held that section 287.120.1 immunity will shield a co-employee's negligent act unless the plaintiff can establish the co-employee engaged in affirmative conduct that constitutes at least negligence and the co-employee must purposefully and dangerously cause or increase the risk of injury through that conduct. The Missouri Supreme Court reversed the circuit court’s judgment which was in favor of Brock and found that Edwards’ conduct fell within the employer’s nondelegable duty to provide a safe workplace.

Brock v. Dunne is monumental in its holding. It has now become nearly impossible for a co-employee to be held liable for their own negligence. The court held that section 287.120.1 provides a mental element to the exception: a co-employee enjoys immunity unless he or she purposefully caused or increased the risk of injury. Co-employees are therefore statutorily immune from liability unless they engaged in an affirmative negligent act that purposefully and dangerously caused or increased the risk of injury.

This purposeful intent element is one which is nearly impossible to fulfill. This verdict has the potential to increase co-employee negligence as employees and supervisors can simply commit acts of negligence knowing they can defend their negligence by claiming lack of the requisite mental state to be held liable as a co-employee with purposeful intent in their affirmative negligent act under Section 287.120.1.

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Bollwerk & Associates, LLC is located in St. Louis, Missouri and serves all of Missouri and Illinois including the following counties, cities, and towns:

St. Louis. St. Louis County: Clayton, Chesterfield, Kirkwood, Florissant, Oakville, University City, Mehlville, Wildwood, Ballwin, Affton, Maryland Heights, Hazelwood, Webster Groves, Brentwood, Lemay, Bellefontaine Neighbors, Manchester, Town and Country, Ferguson, Glendale, Creve Coeur, Maplewood, Bridgeton, Ladue, Jennings, Saint Ann. Jefferson County: Arnold, Festus, Murphy, Barnhart, De Soto, Fenton, Byrnes Mill. St. Charles County: O'Fallon, St. Charles, St. Peters, Wentzville, Lake St. Louis, Weldon Spring. Franklin County: Washington, Union, Sullivan, Pacific, Saint Clair. Warren County: Warrenton, Wright City. Lincoln County: Troy, Elsberry, Moscow Mills. Boone County: Columbia. Randolph County: Moberly, Huntsville. Southern Illinois.