Aventura Mall Venture v. Olson
1990 WL 29496, 561 So.2d 319 (1990)
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Rule of Law:
A landowner has no legal duty to warn a business invitee of an open and obvious condition that is not inherently dangerous, such as an ordinary and visible sidewalk curb.
Facts:
- On a clear day in December 1986, Betty Olson was a business invitee at the Aventura Mall.
- Olson was walking on a sidewalk and approached a six-inch curb.
- The vertical side of the curb was painted yellow, but the top horizontal surface, or 'crown,' was not.
- Olson's companion acknowledged that they were 'chatting' right before the accident occurred.
- Olson did not see the change in elevation, slipped off the curb, fell, and was injured.
- The lighting around the sidewalk was adequate and there were no foreign objects on the sidewalk to obstruct her view.
Procedural Posture:
- Betty Olson (plaintiff) filed a negligence action against Aventura Mall Venture (defendant) in a Florida trial court.
- At trial, Aventura moved for a directed verdict, which the trial court denied.
- A jury returned a verdict for Olson, finding her 50% comparatively negligent and awarding damages.
- The trial court entered a final judgment against Aventura based on the jury's verdict.
- Aventura Mall Venture (appellant) appealed the final judgment to the District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District, where Betty Olson was the appellee.
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Issue:
Is an ordinary six-inch sidewalk curb that is not painted on its top surface an inherently dangerous condition that creates a duty for a landowner to warn a business invitee of the step-down?
Opinions:
Majority - Jorgenson, J.
No, an ordinary six-inch sidewalk curb is not an inherently dangerous condition that creates a duty for a landowner to warn a business invitee. A landowner's duty is to warn invitees of latent or concealed perils, not open and obvious dangers. An owner is entitled to assume an invitee will perceive that which is obvious through the ordinary use of their senses. The curb was a permanent, plainly visible condition, and the weather and lighting were clear. The plaintiff's argument that the curb's color blended with the driveway is unpersuasive, as it is common knowledge that sidewalks and streets are often the same color. To hold otherwise would make property owners the virtual insurers of pedestrian safety.
Analysis:
This decision reinforces the 'open and obvious danger' doctrine within Florida's premises liability jurisprudence. It clarifies that common, permanent architectural features like sidewalk curbs are not, as a matter of law, inherently dangerous conditions requiring a warning. The ruling limits the scope of landowner liability by placing a degree of responsibility on invitees to observe their surroundings and avoid obvious hazards. This precedent makes it more difficult for plaintiffs to succeed on negligence claims involving ordinary, unconcealed conditions on a property.
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