Garrison v. Old Man River Esplanade, L.L.C.

133 So. 3d 699, 2013 La.App. 4 Cir. 0869, 2013 WL 7891709, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 2653
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedDecember 18, 2013
DocketNo. 2013-CA-0869
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 133 So. 3d 699 (Garrison v. Old Man River Esplanade, L.L.C.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Garrison v. Old Man River Esplanade, L.L.C., 133 So. 3d 699, 2013 La.App. 4 Cir. 0869, 2013 WL 7891709, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 2653 (La. Ct. App. 2013).

Opinion

DANIEL L. DYSART, Judge.

11 Alice Garrison appeals a summary judgment granted in favor of The Esplanade at City Park and its insurer, Chubb America Service Corporation. For the following reasons, we affirm.

BACKGROUND:

Ms. Garrison initially filed suit against Old Man River Esplanade, L.L.C. d/b/a The Esplanade at City Park (The Esplanade), Chubb America Service Corporation, and Jerry Schiffmann d/b/a Bayou Grocery (Bayou Grocery). The Esplanade is a 441-unit apartment building located near Bayou St. John in New Orleans. Bayou Grocery is a small convenience store located on the first floor of the building, which leases the space from the building’s owner. Ms. Garrison, who worked as a sitter for a resident at The Esplanade, alleged that on September 12, 2010, she slipped and fell inside of Bayou Grocery, severely injuring herself.

Ms. Garrison alleged that her fall was caused by a broken pipe in a paint room located across the hall from Bayou Grocery that had occurred the day before her fall. She argues that “circumstantial evidence” demonstrates that water from |2the paint room soaked the hallway between the paint room and Bayou Grocery, and was likely tracked into the grocery causing Ms. Garrison’s fall. It is not disputed that the paint room was under the control of The Esplanade.

Ms. Garrison further alleged that her fall was caused by the negligence of The Esplanade and its employees, as well as the negligence of Bayou Grocery and its employees, for their failure to inspect the premises, provide a safe premises, and to warn of the dangerous condition.

The Esplanade and Bayou Grocery both moved for summary judgment, and after hearing both motions contemporaneously, the trial court granted summary judgment as to The Esplanade and denied summary judgment as to Bayou Grocery.

DISCUSSION:

A motion for summary judgment is a procedural device used to avoid a full scale trial when there is no genuine issue of material fact for all or part of the relief prayed for by a litigant. Samaha v. Rau, 07-1726 (La.2/26/08), 977 So.2d 880; Duncan v. USAA Ins. Co., 06-363 (La.11/29/06), 950 So.2d 544. A motion for summary judgment should only be granted if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to material facts and that the movant is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. La.Code Civ. Proc. art. 966B.

The burden of proof on a motion for summary judgment remains with the movant to point out to the court that there is no factual support for an essential element in the opponent’s case. Thereafter, if the adverse party fails to produce ^factual support sufficient to establish that he will be able to satisfy his evidentiary burden of proof at trial, there is no genuine issue of material fact, and summary judgment is appropriate. La.Code Civ. Proc. art. 966 C(2), also see, Hutchinson v. Knights of Columbus, Council No. 5717, 03-1533, p. 7 (La.2/20/04), 866 So.2d 228, 233; Estate of Alix v. Wells, 07-0503, p. 2 (La.App. 4 Cir. 12/12/07), 974 So.2d 63, 64.

An adverse party to a supported motion for summary judgment may not rest on [701]*701the mere allegations or denials of his pleading, but his response, by affidavits or as otherwise provided by law, must set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue of material fact for trial. La.Code Civ. Proc. art. 967 B; Townley v. City of Iowa, 97-493, p. 5 (La.App. 3 Cir. 10/29/97), 702 So.2d 323, 326.

In determining whether summary judgment is appropriate, appellate courts review evidence de novo under the same criteria that govern the trial court’s determination of whether summary judgment is appropriate. Quantum Resources Mgmt., L.L.C. v. Pirate Lake Oil Corp., 12-1472, p. 5 (La.3/19/13), 112 So.3d 209, 214; Serou v. Touro Infirmary, 12-0089, p. 48 (La.App. 4 Cir. 1/9/13), 105 So.3d 1068, 1100; La.Code Civ. Proc. art. 966.

The Esplanade maintained that La. Civ. Code art. 2317.1 is the applicable law because it is an apartment complex/landlord that rents space to residential and commercial lessees.

Louisiana Civil Code art. 2317.1 provides that:

The owner or custodian of a thing is answerable for damage occasioned by its ruin, vice, or defect, only |4upon a showing that he knew or, in the exercise of reasonable care, should have known of the ruin, vice, or defect which caused the damage, that the damage could have been prevented by the exercise of reasonable care, and that he failed to exercise such reasonable care. Nothing in this Article shall preclude the court from the application of the doctrine of res ipsa loquitor in an appropriate case.

Ms. Garrison agrees that La. Civ.Code arts. 2317.1 and 2322 are the applicable statutes to determine liability in this case.

The Esplanade further asserted that although normally a lessor warrants a premises against vices or defects, such warranty may be waived by the lessee. La. Civ. Code arts. 2696, et seq. The Esplanade attached to its motion an affidavit of Christina Pascal, the property manager for The Esplanade, which included a copy of the lease agreement between The Esplanade and Bayou Grocery.

The lease agreement provided that The Esplanade did not maintain any insurance policy to cover Bayou Grocery for personal injuries sustained within its premises. Specifically, the lease provided that The Esplanade was “not responsible for any resident, guest or occupant for damages or loss of personal property or personal injury (including but not limited to) fire, smoke, rain, flood, water and pipe leaks, hail, ice, snow, lightning, wind, explosions, earthquake, interruption of utilities, theft, hurricane, negligence of other residents, occupants, or invited/uninvited guests or vandalism unless otherwise required by law.” The lease also confirmed that Bayou Grocery accepted the property “as is” except for conditions materially affecting the health or safety of ordinary persons. The Esplanade disclaimed all implied warranties except those required by law.

Further, The Esplanade asserted in its motion for summary judgment that Ms. Garrison has no evidence to prove an essential element of her claim, i.e., that | sThe Esplanade had notice of an unreasonably dangerous condition on the premises prior to her accident.

To prove premises liability under La. Civ.Code art. 2317. 1, a plaintiff must prove: 1) that the defendant knew or should have known of the vice or defect; 2) that the damage could have been prevented by the exercise of reasonable care; and, 3) that the defendant failed to exercise such reasonable care. Greenhouse v. C.F. Kenner Associates, Ltd. P’ship, 98-0496 (La.App. 4 Cir. 11/10/98), 723 So.2d 1004. [702]*702Inherent in these elements is that the vice or defect (in this case water leaking) causes the injury.

Ms. Garrison filed oppositions to the subject motion for summary judgment and to the one filed on behalf of Bayou Grocery. In it she cited to deposition testimony of Jerry Schiffman wherein he testified that on the day before Ms.

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Bluebook (online)
133 So. 3d 699, 2013 La.App. 4 Cir. 0869, 2013 WL 7891709, 2013 La. App. LEXIS 2653, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/garrison-v-old-man-river-esplanade-llc-lactapp-2013.