The Independent Contractor

Here’s a great case that helps to explain the difference between an independent contractor and employee.

Jose Torres was a self-employed gardener, doing business under the name Jose Torres Gardening Service. From 1984 until June 1988, Torres performed weekly general gardening services at several homes in Torrance, California, including the home of Michael and Ona Reardons. In June 1988, the Reardons employed Torres to trim a 70 foot tall tree located in their front yard. At 11:00 AM on the morning of June 20, 1988, Torres arrived at the Reardons’ home with one helper. The reardons were not at home. David Boice, Reardons’ next door neighbor, cautioned Torres to take care cutting a large branch 25 feet from the ground that overhung the roof of Boice’s house.

When Torres was ready to cut the branch, Boice came outside to hold a rope that was tied to the branch, with the intention of pulling the branch away from his house as it fell. Torres positioned himself on the branch next to the trunk and began to cut at a point just beyond where he was standing. According to Torres, Boice pulled on the rope when Torres was not expecting a pull. As a result, Torres’s chain saw kicked back and Torres fell from the tree, landing on his back. Torres was rendered a paraplegic as a result of his fall.

Torres sued the Reardons to recover for his injuries, alleging that he was their employee and therefore could recover from them for failing to provide him with workers’ compensation insurance. The Reardons countered this argument by saying that Torres was an independent contractor to whom they were not liable. The trial court agreed with the Reardons and granted their motion for summary judgment. Torres appealed. The court of appeals held that Torres was an independent contractor and that the Reardons were not liable to him.

Uncontradicted evidence showed that Torres was engaged in a distinct occupation and an independently established business, Torres supplied his own tools and equipment used in the work, Torres hired his own employees, Torres was not hired by the day or hour but contracted with the Reardons to produce the specific result of trimming the tree for an agreed-upon price, the Reardons did not control the manner of means of accomplishing the desired result, and the work that Torres contracted to perform was not work ordinarily done in the course of the Reardons’ business but was maintenance work done on their home. Therefore, Torres was an independent contractor, not an employee of the Reardons.

Clearly, in certain situations businesses can reduce their liability by contracting with independent contractors. The key, of course, is to ensure the above elements as found in the Torres case are met.