On December 3, 2024, Allison Janowitz, Senior Partner, obtained a final judgment in a premises liability case.  Plaintiff was leaving a grocery store, when she failed to appreciate the existence of a curb over her highly packed grocery cart.  As a result, the Plaintiff flipped over her cart landing onto the asphalt, causing claimed injuries to her neck and spine, as well as claims to pain in her shoulder.  She ultimately underwent several radiofrequency ablations and various other treatments, with claimed medical specials of over $300,000.00.

Defendant filed a Motion for Summary Judgment on the grounds that a curb is an open and obvious condition that is inherently non-dangerous, based on the argument that curbs are everywhere, and not hidden dangerous.  Further, the Plaintiff’s testimony was that the groceries were piled so high that she could not see over her purchases and did not appreciate that the curb was there.  Plaintiff filed an affidavit from an expert indicating that the curb violated a multitude of building codes, and was a dangerous condition.  However, based on the agreements between the Defendants, the Court found that the property owner had no custody or control over the subject area.  Further, the Court found that the curb is not an open and obvious condition, and was not inherently dangerous, granting Final Judgment in favor of the property owner.