The Plaintiff was in the bagging area of the GMR represented Defendant’s grocery store. The Plaintiff had just finished checking out at the register when he slipped and fell due to water on the floor, sustaining injuries. The Plaintiff sued the Defendant alleging that the Defendant was negligent in failing to keep the area safe for business invitees and clear of the water that caused his fall. The Plaintiff would go on to claim that the Defendant’s employee admitted to presence of the water immediately after the Plaintiff’s fall.
Mr. Merrigan filed a motion for summary judgment and arguing that the Defendant cannot be held liable for a sudden transitory spill that the Defendant did not cause. Further, during oral argument, Mr. Merrigan asserted that the Plaintiff was unable to produce evidence of the source of water or how long it had been present. Without this evidence, Mr. Merrigan argued that the Plaintiff would be unable to prove that the Defendant was negligent by creating the dangerous condition or allowing the condition to remain in the bagging area for an unreasonable amount of time.
Ultimately, the Court agreed with Mr. Merrigan and dismissed the Plaintiff’s claims against the Defendant with prejudice.
