Morrison Mahoney Partner Sean Milano for obtained a defense verdict in a slip-and-fall case. The plaintiff, a security guard employed by a contracted security company to patrol an outlet shopping center, slipped and fell on patch of ice on an outlet sidewalk on New Year’s Day.
The plaintiff claimed that the ice formed as a result of water dripping from snow melt from the roof of one of the outlet buildings. He claimed that the water froze on the sidewalk creating a hazardous condition that defendant failed to adequately address. He further testified that after his fall, he observed ice but saw no ice melt in the vicinity of his fall. As a result of the fall, the plaintiff sustained a knee injury which required surgical repair.
The defense presented work log, time card, and staff-scheduling evidence, through the outlet general manager, to support the outlets’ contention that the property was properly staffed and maintained on the date in question. The defense also argued that the sidewalk ice on which the plaintiff claimed to have slipped was a premises condition which the plaintiff himself was tasked to look for and report as part of his security patrol of the outlets. The Norfolk Superior Court jury deliberated for less than 90 minutes before returning a verdict in favor of the defendant.
