Jones v. Dressel

Facts

Michael Jones, Plaintiff,a 17 year old, entered into a contractual agreement with Free Flight Sport Aviation, Inc., Defendant, for recreational skydiving services, such as transportation by airplane to the jump site. The contract contained an exculpatory clause that would releaseDefendant, its owners, agents, and employees from any liability for losses or injury sustained by Defendant while using Defendant’s services, including its aircraft, regardless if the harm was caused by Defendant’s negligence. The contract had an alternative provision that would waive the exculpatory clause in exchange for a $50 fee. However, that provision was crossed out when Plaintiff received the agreement to sign. Plaintiff did not inquire into the crossed out provision, resulting in ambiguity of whether Defendant would apply the alternative provision to Plaintiff. Once Plaintiff turned 18, Plaintiff sustained serious injuries in a crash of a Plaintiff’s airplane while on the route to a jump site. A year later, Plaintiff sued Defendant, the plane’s owners and operators, and the Littleton Airport on the grounds of negligence and willful and wanton conduct. The trial court granted defendants’ partial motion for summary judgment on the negligence issue. The appellate court affirmed. Plaintiff appealed.