Bennett v. Musgrave (130 Ill. App. 2d 891, 1970)

Mr. PRESIDING JUSTICE EBERSPACHER

delivered the opinion of the court:

The plaintiff brought this action to recover damages for loss of sight arising from a claimed violation of the Structural Work Act. (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1967, ch. 48, par. 60 et seq. ) and common law negligence. The defendant filed a motion to strike the complaint for failure to state a cause of action. The defendants motion was sustained and judgment entered for the defendant, from which plaintiff appeals.

The only issue presented is on the pleadings. The question is whether the trial court was correct in sustaining defendant’s motion to strike.

Since the question is of the sufficiency of the complaint, the “facts” must be those as alleged in the complaint. The defendant was the owner of property in Oblong, Illinois upon which his employees were erecting a building. The defendant requested the plaintiff, a non-employee, to check the progress of the building. Plaintiff went to the premises for that purpose, and while plaintiff was on the premises, a workman “was working upon the aforesaid scaffold or support and was engaged in the erection of the building * * e, a certain wrench which he was using upon said scaffold or support was caused to and did fall therefrom and did then and there strike the plaintiff causing him to sustain the injury