Irrigation Districts as "public Corporations"- the Latest Inductee Into the Governmental Immunity Club the Wyoming Sup

• Jurisdiction: Wyoming,United States
• Citation: Vol. 32 No. 5 Pg. 5
• Publication year: 2009
• Pages: 5
• Year: 2009
• topic: Civil Procedure,Public Sector Law

Wyoming Bar Journal 2009.

Vol. 32, No. 5, 5. Irrigation Districts as "Public Corporations"- The Latest Inductee into the Governmental Immunity Club The Wyoming Sup

Wyoming Lawyer
Issue: October, 2009

Irrigation Districts as "Public Corporations" - The Latest Inductee into the Governmental Immunity Club

By Harriet M. Hageman

The Wyoming Supreme Court ruled in January of this year that irrigation districts are "public corporations" for purposes of the Governmental Claims Act ("WGCA" or "Act"). In reaching that conclusion, the Court noted that Krenning v. Heart Mountain Irrigation District, 200 P.3d 774 (Wyo. 2009), was the first case in which it had been "squarely presented with the question of whether the WGCA provides governmental immunity to an irrigation district." Id. at 778. The Court then undertook an in-depth interpretation of the statutory language of the WGCA in an attempt to determine the Legislature's intent "based primarily on the plain and ordinary meaning of the words used in the statute." Id. The purpose of this article is to summarize the Court's analysis and conclusion, and identify a few of the implications of the Krenning decision.

Facts and Procedural Background

Heart Mountain Irrigation District ("Heart Mountain" or "District") is an irrigation district formed pursuant to Wyo.Stat. § 41-7-201. James Flowers was an employee of Heart Mountain. Steven Krenning owned and leased lands within the District and received irrigation water from Heart Mountain. On October 4, 2004, Mr. Flowers and Mr. Krenning had a chance meeting on the road paralleling one of the District's canals. They began arguing, a physical altercation ensued, and Mr. Flowers struck Mr. Krenning with a shovel at least twice. Mr. Krenning suffered a broken arm and head injuries. Mr. Flowers was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon. At trial Mr. Flowers did not deny hitting Mr. Krenning with the shovel, but claimed that he acted in self defense. The jury agreed and acquitted Mr. Flowers.

On July 14, 2005, the Krennings presented the District with a Verified Notice of Claim pursuant to Wyo.Stat. § 1-39-113 of the WGCA. On August 10, 2005, the Krennings filed suit against the District and Mr. Flowers. In June, 2007, Heart Mountain moved for summary judgment arguing that it was immune from suit pursuant to the WGCA. Mr. Flowers joined that motion, claiming that he was also subject to governmental immunity as an employee...