Plaintiff alleged that she sustained significant injuries after slipping and falling on a piece of metal shelving which was placed on the salesfloor of the subject grocery store by an independent contractor hired to service a refrigeration unit within the store. While actively working on the unit, the technician removed several components and leaned them on a nearby product display. Thereafter, the technician left the area unattended for 3 minutes. It was in this timeframe that the incident occurred. The dangerous condition existed for less than 8 minutes total during which time only 1 employee walked through the area who testified she never saw the item. Plaintiff argued she did not need to prove actual or constructive notice of the items the technician left on the floor because the store owed a non-delegable duty to maintain its premises in a reasonably safe condition. HM&B argued that Florida Statute § 768.0755 requires evidence of actual or constructive notice in order to establish a breach of the non-delegable duty owed to invitees such as the Plaintiff. Following briefing and oral argument, the Court granted the Defendant’s Motion for Final Summary Judgment, finding that Plaintiff failed to produce evidence creating a genuine issue of material fact regarding actual or constructive notice under Florida Statute § 768.0755. The Court concluded that the single employee seen in the vicinity alone was insufficient to establish constructive notice and that the store did not have a heightened duty of care because there was a licensed contractor performing work on the premises. There was no evidence of prior similar incidents produced. As a result, the Court entered judgment in favor of the Defendant and dismissed the action before trial. Schuyler Smith and Paxton Bagan represented the defense and secured the summary judgment dismissal.
