Scibilia v. Philadelphia

Citations

• 279 Pa. 549
• 124 A. 273
• 32 A.L.R. 981
• 1924 Pa. LEXIS 781

Syllabus

<p>Negligence — Municipalities—Governmental and public duties— Private and corporate duties — Respondeat superior — Removal of ashes — Exemption of municipality from liability of agents for negligence.</p> <p>1. The implied common law liability or nonliability of municipality for the torts of its servants depends upon the character of service they were performing at the time of the injury. If they were acting for the city in its corporate or business capacity, the municipality may be held liable; but if they were performing duties of a public or governmental character, there is an immunity from municipal liability.</p> <p>2. The public-private test for ascertaining a city’s liability for its servants’ torts must not be confused with the rule which, in certain instances, makes a municipality liable for failure to perform an absolute duty, and not liable for the omission to exercise a discretionary power.</p> <p>3. Even though a municipality is required to render a particular service to the public, it will not be liable for injuries inflicted by its servants in the performance of that duty, if the service is of a governmental character delegated to the municipality to be performed in behalf of the sovereign state.</p> <p>4. Marked exceptions to the rule, as in highway, public works and nuisance eases, do not affect this rule.</p> <p>5. The case of public health is a subject-matter of general concern, and how it shall be accomplished, is a public question.</p> <p>6. When the legislature leaves the accomplishment of public health to any degree in the hands of the several municipalities, they act as governmental agencies, and not as business corporations in the performance of the power placed at their disposal or the duty thus put upon them, whichever it may be, and the rule of respondeat superior does not then apply to them.</p> <p>| 7. The gathering and disposal of refuse and ashes is primarily la health measure, and hence a public or governmental measure Within the po