Important Ruling By Maryland's Court Of Appeals

Michael S. Barclay v. Ports America Baltimore, Inc., CA No. 41, Sept. Term 2011. Decided: June 27, 2012. Opinion by Greene, J. Reported.

Issue:

Do employers have a duty to the public when the employee's extended work schedule caused sleep deprivation, resulting in the employee falling asleep at the wheel of his/her vehicle during his/her commute home, & causing a foreseeable injury to members of the general public?

Holding:

No; affirmed. The court ruled on-the-job fatigue is not a “special circumstance” sufficient to prevent applying the general rule that employers are not responsible for employees’ behavior traveling to and from work.