Court Case Summary
MLF LEGAL IS A
NO-WIN NO FEE LAW FIRM
Amazon.com Services, LLC and Amazon Logistics, Inc. v. De La Victoria
Citation:
Amazon.com Services, LLC and Amazon Logistics, Inc. v. De La Victoria, 711 S.W.3d 250 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] Aug. 27, 2024) (No. 14-23-00493-CV).
Court:
Court of Appeals of Texas, Fourteenth District (Houston)
Facts
- Parties:
- Plaintiff/Appellee: Robert De La Victoria, employed as a “helper” by Blazar Solutions, LLC, a delivery service provider for Amazon.
- Defendants/Appellants: Amazon.com Services, LLC and Amazon Logistics, Inc.
- Incident:
- On August 4, 2021, De La Victoria was riding as a passenger in an Amazon-branded box truck.
- The truck was driven by Soffe Abraham Ruiz Araujo, another Blazar employee.
- While traveling in Fort Bend County, Texas, Araujo allegedly fell asleep at the wheel while driving at a high rate of speed.
- The truck veered off the roadway into a ditch and collided violently with a concrete culvert, coming to an abrupt stop.
- This impact caused catastrophic injuries to De La Victoria.
- Allegations:
- De La Victoria claimed Amazon’s strict delivery quotas and scheduling practices created unsafe conditions that contributed to driver fatigue.
- He sued Blazar, Araujo, Ryder Truck Rental (the truck’s lessor), and the Amazon entities for negligence and gross negligence.
Procedural History
- Amazon moved to compel arbitration under an agreement De La Victoria had signed with Blazar.
- The trial court denied Amazon’s motion.
- On appeal, the Court of Appeals reversed, holding that Amazon could enforce the arbitration agreement as Blazar’s client.
- The case was ordered to arbitration.
Holding
The appellate court held that the arbitration agreement was valid and enforceable by Amazon, requiring De La Victoria’s claims to be resolved in arbitration rather than in court.
How the Injury Occurred
The injury occurred when:
- The driver (Araujo) fell asleep while operating the Amazon box truck.
- The truck left the roadway at high speed.
- It entered a ditch and struck a concrete culvert, causing a sudden, violent stop.
- This collision produced catastrophic injuries to De La Victoria, who was seated as a passenger/helper at the time.
“The claims in the trial court arise out of injuries sustained by appellee/plaintiff Robert De La Victoria when the driver of the truck in which he was a passenger … allegedly fell asleep and drove the truck into a ditch at a high rate of speed. The truck allegedly came to a complete and violent stop when it struck a concrete culvert in the ditch, allegedly causing catastrophic injury to De La Victoria.”
— Amazon.com Servs., LLC v. De La Victoria, 711 S.W.3d 250, 255 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2024).