You are here: / / “Open and Obvious” Nature of Defect Does Not Negate Duty to Keep Premises Saf...
,

“Open and Obvious” Nature of Defect Does Not Negate Duty to Keep Premises Safe.

Plaintiff brought a Labor Law and common law negligence action based upon the allegation that a 1 1/2 inch depression in a marble step at the Buffalo City Hall caused him to slip.  At the time of the accident, plaintiff was employed by a subcontractor which had been hired by defendant company.  The defendant company claimed on appeal that its duty to maintain the premises in a safe condition was obviated by the open and obvious defect in the stair.  The Fourth Department noted that the fact that the defect was “open and obvious” speaks only to plaintiff’s comparative negligence, and does not negate the defendant’s duty to keep the premises reasonably safe.  The Fourth Department went on to hold that the defendant company “failed to establish as a matter of law that the hazard posed by the stair was open and obvious and that they had no duty to warn plaintiff of that tripping hazard.”  Landahl v City of Buffalo and U & S Services, Inc., 1333, CA 12-01208 Fourth Dept. 2-1-13

 

You might also like
Construction at County Airport Was a Governmental Function—County is Therefore “Immune” from a Suit Alleging the Construction Caused a Highway White-Out Condition Which Resulted in Plaintiff’s-Decedent’s Death in a Collision
IN THIS CHILD VICTIMS ACT ACTION, THE JUDGE CORRECTLY STRUCK INFLAMMATORY LANGUAGE FROM THE COMPLAINT BUT SHOULD NOT HAVE SEALED THE COMPLAINT WITHOUT MAKING WRITTEN FINDINGS (FOURTH DEPT).
ARBITRATION AWARD TERMINATING SCHOOL PRINCIPAL FOR ALCOHOL ABUSE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN VACATED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED (FOURTH DEPT).
Reversible Error to Deny For Cause Challenge to Biased Juror/Defendant’s Counsel Ineffective
LYING TO AN INVESTIGATOR WHO RECORDS THE LIE IN A REPORT CANNOT BE THE BASIS OF A “FALSIFYING A BUSINESS RECORD” CHARGE; ALTHOUGH THE ISSUE WAS NOT PRESERVED THE APPEAL WAS CONSIDERED IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE (FOURTH DEPT). ​
AN ADULT GUEST’S ACT OF POURING KEROSENE ONTO AN ACTIVE FIRE IN A FIRE PIT AT DEFENDANTS’ HOME WAS THE SOLE PROXIMATE CAUSE OF PLAINTIFF’S BURN INJURIES; THE DISSENTER ARGUED THERE WAS A QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER A DUTY TO CONTROL THE GUEST’S BEHAVIOR WAS BREACHED (FOURTH DEPT).
PENNSYLVANIA CRIME IS NOT THE EQUIVALENT OF A NEW YORK FELONY; DEFENDANT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN SENTENCED AS A SECOND FELONY OFFENDER (FOURTH DEPT).
ALTHOUGH THE ARGUMENT THAT THE INDICTMENT WAS DUPLICITOUS WAS PRESERVED FOR APPEAL, THE ISSUE WAS NOT RULED ON BY COUNTY COURT AND THEREFORE CAN NOT BE CONSIDERED ON APPEAL; MATTER REMITTED FOR A RULING (FOURTH DEPT).

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2026 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

Single Policy Limit Held to Apply to Successive Tenants in Lead-Paint-Tainted... Knowledge of Dangerous Condition May Make Owner Liable Even Where Owner Exercises...