Pena v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc.

32 F. Supp. 3d 792, 2013 WL 9044986, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 188350
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Texas
DecidedOctober 17, 2013
DocketCivil No. B-12-193
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 32 F. Supp. 3d 792 (Pena v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pena v. Home Depot U.S.A., Inc., 32 F. Supp. 3d 792, 2013 WL 9044986, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 188350 (S.D. Tex. 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

ANDREW S. HANEN, District Judge.

Pending before the Court is Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment on Plaintiffs Premises Liability Claim and Brief in Support Thereof. [Doc. No. 27]. Plaintiff filed a response to Defendant’s Motion, [Doc. No. 30], and Defendant subsequently filed a reply to Plaintiffs Response, [Doc. No. 32]..

Having considered the Parties’ motions, the summary judgment record, and the applicable law, this Court GRANTS Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. The reasons are set out below.

I. BACKGROUND

This case arises out of an incident that occurred on November 23, 2009, whereby the Plaintiff, Cristina Pena (hereinafter “Pena” or “Plaintiff’), slipped and fell on a liquid substance while shopping at a Home Depot U.S.A. (hereinafter “Home Depot” or “Defendant”) store owned and/or operated by Defendant in Brownsville, Texas. [Doc. No. 1, Ex. B-2 at 2]. Plaintiff alleges that she was pushing her shopping cart down Aisle 46 when suddenly her right leg went underneath the cart and her left leg went behind her. [M]. She landed on her left knee and lost her balance, falling backwards onto her tailbone. [Id.}. Two other customers who were shopping in the same aisle witnessed the fall. One man left to ask for help, while the other man stayed with Pena. According to Plaintiff, the man who stayed with her stated, “oh honey, there- is a spill on the floor.” [Id. at 2-3]. Pena then realized that she was lying in a “wet and greasy substance” that appeared to be oil. [Id. at 3].1

[795]*795The manager eventually arrived and summoned an employee to clean up the spill. Plaintiff later testified that the employee was not in the area, but that “he must have been close [by] because he came very quickly.” [Id. at 17]. Pena does not know how the substance got on the floor, how long the substance had been on the floor, or whether any Home Depot employee knew that something was on the floor prior to her fall. [Doc. No. 31 at 13].

Plaintiff filed an action in Cameron County Court at Law No. 3, seeking to hold Defendant liable for her injuries on the basis of premises liability. [See Doc. No. 1, Ex. B-2], Defendant subsequently removed the action to this Court based upon this Court’s diversity jurisdiction. [See Doc. No. 1].

Home Depot moves for summary judgment on the basis that Pena has failed to raise a fact issue on at least one essential element of her premises liability claim: that Defendant knew or should have known of the substance that allegedly caused Plaintiff to slip and fall. According to Defendant, there is no evidence — or, alternatively, Plaintiff has not produced sufficient evidence to raise a fact issue— that the substance had been on the floor long enough to provide Home Depot with an opportunity to discover the dangerous condition. [See Doc. No. 27; see also Doc. No. 32]. In support of its motion, Defendant includes deposition excerpts in which Pena states that she does not know how the substance got on the floor, how long the substance had been on the floor, or whether any Home Depot employee knew that something was on the floor prior to her fall. [See Doc. No. 27, Ex. 2 at 3].2

Pena responds that the evidence, when considered together, raises a genuine issue of material fact regarding Defendant’s constructive notice of the hazardous condition posed by the substance. In support of the notice element, Pena offers the following evidence and draws the following conclusions: (1) a Home Depot employee arrived quickly once called by the manager to clean up the spill, and was thus in proximity to the spill; (2) the substance was conspicuous because it encompassed a large area; (3) Defendant failed to produce doc[796]*796umentation, such as employee walkthrough or inspection logs, regarding the condition of the aisle where Plaintiff fell during the 2.5 hours prior to the fall, indicating that the aisle went unobserved for 2.5 hours; (4) the “oily substance” was dark and gray, suggesting that it been on the floor long enough to accumulate dirt; and (5) the substance was very difficult to remove, suggesting that it had been there long enough to permeate the floor. [See Doc. No. 30 at 3-5],

II. APPLICABLE LAW

A. The Summary Judgment Standard

Under federal law, summary judgment is appropriate if no genuine issue of material fact exists and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56. The movant bears the burden of identifying those portions of the record it believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact. Lincoln Gen. Ins. Co. v. Reyna, 401 F.3d 347, 349 (5th Cir.2005) (citing Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)). If the burden of proof lies with the nonmoving party, the movant may either (1) submit evidence that negates the existence of some material element of the opponent’s claim or defense, or (2) if the crucial issue is one on which the opponent will bear the ultimate burden of proof at trial, demonstrate that the evidence in the record insufficiently supports the essential element or claim. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 330, 106 S.Ct. 2548. (Here, the Defendant has done both.) When the movant has met its burden under Rule 56(c), the nonmoving party cannot survive a summary judgment motion by resting on the mere allegations of its pleadings. The nonmovant must identify specific evidence in the record and articulate the manner in which that evidence supports that party’s claim. Johnson v. Deep E. Texas Reg’l Narcotics Trafficking Task Force, 379 F.3d 293, 305 (5th Cir.2004). This burden is not satisfied by “some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts, conclusory allegations, unsubstantiated assertions, or only a scintilla of evidence.” Little v. Liquid, Air Corp., 37 F.3d 1069, 1076 (5th Cir.1994). In deciding a summary judgment motion, the court draws all reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). Rule 56 requires the court to grant summary judgment, “after adequate time for discovery, and upon motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party’s case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial.” Celotex, 477 U.S. at 322, 106 S.Ct. 2548.

B. Premises Liability

Under Texas law, a property owner owes an invitee a duty to protect the invitee from dangerous conditions that are known or reasonably discoverable. CMH Homes, Inc. v. Daenen, 15 S.W.3d 97, 101 (Tex.2000).

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32 F. Supp. 3d 792, 2013 WL 9044986, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 188350, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pena-v-home-depot-usa-inc-txsd-2013.