## Facts

- James Currier was employed by Amerigas, Inc.
- In December 1995, Currier was injured while working at a facility owned by Amerigas Propane, LP.
- Amerigas Propane, LP was a Delaware limited partnership with two partners: Amerigas, Inc. (general partner) and Amerigas Partners, LP (limited partner).
- Currier received workers’ compensation benefits through a policy owned by Amerigas, Inc.
- By accepting workers’ compensation, Currier waived any tort claim against his employer, Amerigas, Inc., for the same work-related injury.
- Currier (and his wife, Rosemary Currier, for derivative damages) sued Amerigas Propane, LP for negligence, alleging the facility was not properly maintained.
- Amerigas Propane, LP moved for summary judgment, arguing (1) it was not an entity subject to suit and (2) in any event the workers’ compensation exclusive-remedy provision barred the tort action.
- The superior court granted summary judgment for Amerigas Propane, LP on the ground that it qualified as an “employer” under New Hampshire’s Workers’ Compensation Law and therefore shared immunity from tort liability.
- The Curriers appealed to the New Hampshire Supreme Court. The material facts were undisputed, so review focused on whether the trial court’s ruling was correct as a matter of law.

## Issues

1. Whether a limited partnership is immune from an employee’s negligence suit under New Hampshire’s workers’ compensation exclusive-remedy provision when the employee is employed by the partnership’s general partner and has received workers’ compensation benefits from that general partner for the injury.

## Decision

- The New Hampshire Supreme Court affirmed the grant of summary judgment to Amerigas Propane, LP.
- The court held that, given the limited partnership’s ability to act only through its general partner and the general partner’s role as Currier’s employer and provider of workers’ compensation benefits, the limited partnership was treated as an “employer” for purposes of workers’ compensation immunity.
- Because workers’ compensation provided the exclusive remedy for Currier’s work-related injury, the negligence action against Amerigas Propane, LP was barred.

## Legal Principles

- New Hampshire’s Workers’ Compensation Law makes workers’ compensation benefits the exclusive remedy against an employee’s employer for covered, work-related injuries. See RSA 281-A:8, I.
- A plaintiff who accepts workers’ compensation benefits gives up the right to pursue a tort claim against the employer for the same injury.
- In evaluating employer status for immunity, courts look to the functional employment relationship and the statutory scheme, not merely formal labels used to separate closely related business forms.
- Under limited partnership principles applied by the court, the limited partnership conducts business through its general partner; where the general partner employs the worker and provides workers’ compensation coverage, the partnership shares the general partner’s immunity for the same workplace injury.
- Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine dispute of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

## Conclusion

The New Hampshire Supreme Court held that because Amerigas Propane, LP acted through its general partner, Amerigas, Inc., which employed Currier and paid workers’ compensation benefits for the injury, the exclusive-remedy provision barred Currier’s negligence suit against the limited partnership, and summary judgment for Amerigas Propane, LP was affirmed.


Currier v. Amerigas Propane, LP, 737 A.2d 1118 (1999)