Tennessee Injury Lawyer Blog

The great thing about being a homeowner on Halloween is that you merely have to stock up on sweets and turn on an outside light in to be bombarded by hundreds of costumed candy-seekers. Likewise, the bad thing about being a homeowner on Halloween is that you owe a duty to everyone who legally steps foot onto your property to keep it free from defects or conditions that might cause injury, or else you face the risk of a premises liability lawsuit. Learning more about premises liability law in Tennessee may be a valuable idea, especially as Halloween approaches.

One common type of injury that give rise to Halloween-related premises liability lawsuits is injury from burns or exposure to heat or fire. Homeowners should be careful to make sure decorations on their property, both in-home and on the yard outside, do not expose small children to dangerously hot lights, surfaces, or to open flames. Also be sure the walkway or any other heavily trafficked area is free from obstacles like jack-o-lanterns that could potentially tip over and set fire to costumes or other materials that are highly flammable. Likewise, it would be advisable to check other possible fire hazards, such as electrical outlets to make sure everything is in an adequate and safe condition.

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In Moore v. City of Manchester, an employee of the City of Manchester received a message that her sister had fallen and injured herself. She decided to leave in order to check on her sister. It seemed luck was not on her side that day when, as she reached her car, she tripped and broke her wrist on the pavement.

The City denied her Tennessee workers’ compensation claim on the grounds that she was on a personal errand. The trial court ruled in the employee’s favor and on appeal, the Workers’ Compensation Panel (“Panel”) affirmed.

In making this decision, the Panel relied on a rule stated in Lollar v. Wal-Mart. In Lollar, the Supreme Court examined a number of parking lot cases and adopted the following rule: “We hold today that a worker who is on the employer’s premises coming to or going from the actual work place is acting in the course of employment. We further hold that if the employer has provided a parking area for its employees, that parking area is part of the employer’s premises.”

Despite what would seem to be a “bright line” rule, the employer argued that the Lollar rule was not applicable because Employee was embarking upon a purely personal errand—to see her injured sister.

Rejecting this argument, the Panel stated, that “[w]hile it is true that Employee was leaving Employer’s premises for a strictly personal reason, the same would be true of any employee who had completed her work day, and was in the process of going home, or going shopping or going to a restaurant.” Naturally, the Panel held against the Employer and levied a fine of $2,500 for bringing a frivolous appeal.

Score one for employees across Tennessee.

If you’ve been injured while at work and face a belligerent employer like the City of Manchester willing to go the distance (i.e., trial) to deny your claim, you will want an experienced workers’ compensation attorney who is also willing to go the distance for you. Call 866-853-2888 today to speak with a skilled Pigeon Forge workers’ compensation attorney at Baker Associates.

Under Tennessee premises liability law, defendant storekeepers are not insurers of their patron’s safety. Indeed, the opposite view would unfairly expose an otherwise diligent shopkeeper to unlimited liability. Therefore, to be held liable for an injury resulting from a Tennessee slip and fall accident, the shopkeeper must have actual or “constructive knowledge” of a slippery condition. This means that the defendant either knew or should have known of the hazard prior to the injury’s occurrence.

Trying to figure out what somebody actually knew, however, can be an impossible task. It can also be difficult to find evidence that the defendant had constructive knowledge. To prove the defendant should have known of a hazard, the plaintiff often has to show how long the slippery condition had existed prior to injury or the proximity of an employee to the hazard.

But, is this fair where the shopkeeper or an employee directly creates a dangerous condition in the store such as to make it reasonably foreseeable that the acts of third parties will create a dangerous condition or defect? For example, one would think a shopkeeper is not liable for falls that occur in a parking lot due to another customer’s oil-leaking car. But, what if the store owner routinely allowed delivery trucks to park in front of the store and the trucks were known to leak oil? Should the unwary customer in that situation be left without a remedy where the shopkeeper has negligently permitted a slip and fall hazard to be created by another?

Well, the Tennessee Supreme court recently said no in Blair v. West Town Mall. Adopting what is called the “method of operation” theory, the Court held that in premises liability cases, a plaintiff “may attempt to establish constructive notice of the presence of a dangerous condition by showing a pattern of conduct, a recurring incident, or a general or continuing condition indicating the dangerous condition's existence.” In other words, shopkeepers may be responsible under strict liability tort in Tennessee for a method of operation that creates a reasonably foreseeable slip and fall hazard.

Just because no one was there to see you fall doesn’t mean you’re out of luck. A shopkeeper has a duty to exercise reasonable care under all the circumstances. If the shopkeeper knows that other customers or employees have created risks that are preventable, he may indeed be liable to you for your injuries.

If you’ve been injured in a Tennessee slip and fall accident, call 866-853-2888 to speak with one of Baker Associates’ skilled personal injury attorneys in Gatlinburg.

A substantial number of Tennessee personal injuries caused by slip-and-fall accidents occur each year as a result of slick floors in grocery stores and restaurants. Many of these accidents could have been prevented if the store employee or manager would have paid more attention to the condition of the floors or simply exercised a little common sense.

To prevent serious personal injuries to customers, Tennessee courts have imposed certain duties upon store keepers because of their superior knowledge of the premises. The breach of these duties exposes the store keeper to liability.

To prove a Tennessee premises liability case involving a slip-and-fall , the plaintiff must establish that the defendant owed the customer (“invitee”) a duty recognized by law. Duties owed to customers include inspecting the premises for slippery substances, placing warning signs where a walking surface is known to be slick, and correcting any slippery condition created by employees or customers.

In addition to establishing a duty owed, the plaintiff must also prove that a hazardous condition existed and that it caused the fall. A hazardous condition may involve a foreign substance on the floor such as vegetable matter, grease, or spilled liquids. Accumulations of water due to rain or product displays are also hazardous conditions commonly resulting in Tennessee slip-and-fall accidents. Store slip-and-fall accidents also frequently result from hazardous conditions due to improper cleaning or waxing of floor surfaces.

The plaintiff must also show either that the defendant—through its employees—created the condition or, if a third party created the condition, that the owner had notice of the hazardous condition. Notice can be proved by considerations of the obviousness of the condition and the length of time the floor was slick.

Proving Tennessee slip-and-fall cases can be a tricky business. Evidentiary issues are complex, and facts can be hard to prove. What you need in these cases are experienced and skilled personal injury attorneys in Tennessee with the necessary ability to be successful in a Tennessee premises liability action. If you have been injured, call the top personal injury attorneys at Baker Associates at 866-853-2888 for a free consultation.