Anderson Ex Rel. Anderson v. Ken Kauffman & Sons Excavating, L.L.C.

I concur in the result reached by the majority, but write separately because I differ on the route taken to get there.

As the majority notes, neither § 287.110.1 nor § 287.120 is ambiguous when read alone. Maj. Op. at 107. However, “[c]ourts must read statutes that deal with the same subject matter in pari materia.” State v. Pembleton, 978 S.W.2d 352, 355 (Mo.App.E.D.1998). When we do so in this case, it becomes abundantly clear that the language of the two sections are in conflict and cannot be harmonized. Therefore, it is incumbent on the court to apply rules of construction to resolve the…