Garrity v. Wal-Mart Stores East, Ltd. Partnership

288 F.R.D. 395, 2012 WL 6648717, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 180429
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Kentucky
DecidedDecember 20, 2012
DocketCivil Action No. 4:11-CV-00015-M
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 288 F.R.D. 395 (Garrity v. Wal-Mart Stores East, Ltd. Partnership) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Garrity v. Wal-Mart Stores East, Ltd. Partnership, 288 F.R.D. 395, 2012 WL 6648717, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 180429 (W.D. Ky. 2012).

Opinion

Memorandum Opinion and Order

JOSEPH H. McKINLEY, JR., Chief Judge.

This matter is before the Court on Wal-Mart’s Motion for Summary Judgment [DN 24] and its First Motion in Limine Concerning Plaintiffs’ Expert, Keith Vidal, P.E. [DN 26]. Fully briefed, this matter is ripe for decision. For the following reasons, Wal-Mart’s motion for summary judgment is DENIED and Wal-Mart’s motion in limine is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part.

I. Background

On February 12, 2010, Plaintiffs Mitchell Garrity and Sherry Garrity took their daughters to Wal-Mart Store #701 to get their 1997 Ford Explorer serviced. Mr. Garrity also planned to exchange some items that he had previously purchased at Wal-Mart. Mr. Garrity parked his vehicle in the oil-express lane on the west side of Wal-Mart Store # 701, near the entrance of the Tire & Lube Express (“TLE”) Department. He then walked with his family through the entrance of the TLE Department.

While his wife and daughters went to the restroom, Mr. Garrity registered his vehicle for service. He then asked the Wal-Mart employee who took his service order whether he could return his items through the TLE Department. Testimony is conflicting as to the employee’s response. Both parties agree that the employee informed Mr. Garrity that he could not return the items through the TLE Department, as Wal-Mart’s policy required all returned items to be taken through either the store’s general merchandise entrance or its grocery entrance. However, Mr. Garrity testified that the employee also instructed him to walk out of the TLE Department to the front of the store. (Dep. of Mitchell Garrity [DN 24-4] 20.) The employee testified that she did not instruct Mr. Garrity to do so. (Dep. of Angela Dickens [DN 24-8] 17-18.) Regardless, Mr. Garrity exited the TLE Department through the same door that he entered and proceeded toward the front of the store. According to Mr. Garrity, both the TLE parking lot and the area immediately outside the TLE Department were clear of ice and snow. (Dep. of Mitchell Garrity [DN 24-4] 22.)

Mr. Garrity then began walking on the only sidewalk that connects the TLE Department to the front of the store, which sidewalk is adjacent to Wal-Mart’s lawn and garden area. At this point, Mr. Garrity slipped and fell on black ice, breaking his hip and injuring his lower back. (Id. at 27-31.) Mr. Garrity testified that the sidewalk on which he slipped “looked like it had been worked on, and it was wet in areas.” (Id. at 23.) He further testified that it “looked like somebody had cleared a path,” as the snow appeared to have been cleared to the sidewalk’s sides. (Id. at 23, 27.) After Mr. Garrity fell, he first discovered the black ice. (Id. at 25.)

Soon after Mr. Garrity fell, he was approached by another Wal-Mart customer. She testified that she did not see the ice when she looked at the sidewalk, but when she went to help Mr. Garrity, she almost slipped and fell. (Aff. of Mary Freeman [DN 30-4] ¶3.) The customer further testified that the existence of ice was deceptive, as “it looked like the sidewalk was wet.” (Id. at ¶ 4.) Also, an EMT who arrived on the scene to treat Mr. Garrity testified that the sidewalk appeared to be only wet and that he almost slipped on ice. (Aff. of Bill Bratcher [DN 30-5] ¶ 5.) Wal-Mart concedes that “no clearing or attempt at clearing was performed on the concrete sidewalk where [398]*398Mitchell fell.” (Defs.’ Mem. in Supp. of Mot. for Summ. J. [DN 24-2] 5.)

II. Standard of Review

Before the Court may grant a motion for summary judgment, it must find that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a). The moving party bears the initial burden of specifying the basis for its motion and identifying that portion of the record that demonstrates the absence of a genuine issue of material fact. Celotex Corp. v. Ca-trett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Once the moving party satisfies this burden, the non-moving party thereafter must produce specific facts demonstrating a genuine issue of fact for trial. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247-48, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).

Although the Court must review the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, the non-moving party must do more than merely show that there is some “metaphysical doubt as to the material facts.” Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co., Ltd. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure require the non-moving party to present specific facts showing that a genuine factual issue exists by “citing to particular parts of materials in the record” or by “showing that the materials cited do not establish the absence ... of a genuine dispute^]” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c)(1). “The mere existence of a scintilla of evidence in support of the [non-moving party’s] position will be insufficient; there must be evidence on which the jury could reasonably find for the [non-moving party].” Anderson, 477 U.S. at 252, 106 S.Ct. 2505.

In considering a motion for summary judgment, the Court must remain cognizant of the role that expert testimony plays. In this regard, Federal Rule of Evidence 702 provides:

A witness who is qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education may testify in the form of an opinion or otherwise if: (a) the expert’s scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue; (b) the testimony is based on sufficient facts or data; (c) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods; and (d) the expert has reliably applied the principles and methods to the facts of the case.

Fed.R.Evid. 702. Under Rule 702, the judge acts as a gatekeeper to ensure that expert testimony is both reliable and relevant. Mike’s Train House, Inc. v. Lionel, L.L.C., 472 F.3d 398, 407 (6th Cir.2006) (citing Kumho Tire Co. v. Carmichael, 526 U.S. 137, 119 S.Ct. 1167, 143 L.Ed.2d 238 (1999)). In determining whether testimony is reliable, the Court’s focus “must be solely on principles and methodology, not on the conclusions that they generate.” Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharms., Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 595, 113 S.Ct.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
288 F.R.D. 395, 2012 WL 6648717, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 180429, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/garrity-v-wal-mart-stores-east-ltd-partnership-kywd-2012.