Under New Jersey law, commercial property owners have a duty to maintain the sidewalks abutting their properties and can be held liable for injuries occurring on those sidewalks. Residential landowners, on the other hand, do not have the same responsibilities and are immune from claims for personal injuries on residential sidewalks. In the 2011 case of Luchejko v. City of Hoboken, the New Jersey Supreme Court extended residential sidewalk immunity to Homeowners Associations (“HOAs”) for injuries occurring on public sidewalks adjoining residential condominium communities. Recently, the Court addressed the issue of whether this immunity also applies to claims for personal
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Archives for Premises Liability
The Inadmissibility of Expert Net Opinions Addressed by Another New Jersey Court
Relying on the rationale set forth in the recently decided case of Townsend v. Pierre (see post of March 13, 2015), the Appellate Division of the New Jersey Superior Court affirmed the summary judgment dismissal of a personal injury action in Deniese v. Site Service Group Inc. (unpublished), on the basis that plaintiff’s expert rendered an inadmissible net opinion regarding the defendant’s alleged negligence. Mr. Deniese was injured when he slipped and fell into a row of shrubs while brushing snow from his car, which was parked in front of a bank. He sued the bank’s snow removal and landscaping
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New Jersey Supreme Court to Decide Liability of Homeowners’ Associations for Icy Sidewalks
The New Jersey Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether homeowners’ associations and maintenance contractors may be held liable for failing to clear ice and snow from HOA-managed sidewalks. In Qian v. Toll Brothers, the Court is expected to examine two lower court decisions holding that HOAs and contractors were not liable for such injuries. In reaching these decisions, the lower courts relied upon Luchejko v. Hoboken, in which the Supreme Court declined to extend case law holding commercial property owners liable for injuries caused by defective sidewalks to owners of residential properties. Plaintiff’s counsel in Qian contends that liability
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New York Appellate Court Holds That Landlord is Not Liable for Fall From Roof Accessible From Apartment Window
An intermediate New York appellate court has held that a landlord was not liable for a tenant’s fall from the building’s roof, as the fact that the roof was accessible from the roof did not render the plaintiff’s use of the roof foreseeable. Feuerherm v.Grodinsky concerned an accident that occurred at a seven-unit apartment. The injured tenant had moved into the building at most a few weeks prior to the accident. A portion of the building’s roof was accessible from the injured tenant’s room. After drinking at a bar, the plaintiff tenant arrived home at 3 am, and was found
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District of New Jersey Holds That Bank Has Duty of Care to Prospective Buyers in Foreclosed Home
A magistrate judge in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey has held that a bank owes a duty of care to prospective purchasers of a foreclosed residence. The underlying case concerned a prospective buyer who tripped on a piece of broken glass while visiting a foreclosed home, causing her to fall and resulting in serious injuries. The injured party filed suit against the bank, real estate agent, real estate agency, and maintenance contractor. In support of its motion for summary judgment and in opposition to plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, the bank argued that it
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