Wal-Mart Stores East L. P. v. Benson

The trial court erred in denying summary judgment to store in plaintiff's slip and fall suit because there was no evidence that it had superior knowledge of any hazardous condition.

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Ellington, Presiding Judge.In this premises liability action, Catherine Benson sued Wal-Mart Stores East L. P. and Scott Ferrell in the State Court of Gwinnett County seeking damages for injuries sustained when she slipped and fell while shopping at a Wal-Mart. Following this Court’s grant of their application for interlocutory appeal, Wal-Mart and Ferrell appeal from the trial court’s denial of their motion for summary judgment contending, among other things, that there is no evidence that Wal-Mart had superior knowledge of any hazardous condition and that there is no evidence that Ferrell, a store manager, directed, participated, or cooperated in any act leading to Benson’s fall. We reverse for the reasons set forth below.

A party is entitled to summary judgment if there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56 (c). On appeal from the grant [or denial] of summary judgment, we construe the evidence most favorably towards the nonmoving party, who is given the benefit of all reasonable doubts and possible inferences. The party opposing summary judgment is not required to produce evidence demanding judgment for it, but is only required to present evidence that raises a genuine issue of material fact. Our review of the grant or denial of a motion for summary judgment is de novo. (Citations and punctuation omitted.) Johnson v. Omondi, 294 Ga. 74, 75-76 (751 SE2d 288) (2013).So viewed, the evidence shows the following. On the afternoon of July 5, 2013, Benson slipped and fell in a Wal-Mart in Rome, Georgia. It had been raining earlier in the day. Benson entered the store, where the floor was dry, walked down a nearby aisle, and slipped. According to Benson, one of her feet went forward, and the other back, and she did a “split,” falling down on one knee and then backwards on to the floor. She did not see anything on the floor before she fell. She testified, however, that she landed in a “clear . . . liquid” substance, and that her pants were wet after she fell.

Wal-Mart Stores East L. P. v. Benson

The trial court erred in denying summary judgment to store in plaintiff's slip and fall suit because there was no evidence that it had superior knowledge of any hazardous condition.

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