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Simmons v. Prince et al.

The trial court erred in denying defendant's motion for summary judgment in plaintiff's suit to recover damages for injuries he suffered when he fell through the balusters of a railing that surrounded the front landing of a second-floor apartment because the large gaps between the railing balusters was a static defect of which the plaintiff had equal knowledge.

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Ray, Presiding Judge.

Devin Prince sued Robert Simmons to recover damages for injuries he suffered when he fell through the balusters of a railing which surrounded the front landing of a second floor apartment.[1] At the time of the fall, Simmons rented the apartment to a tenant, and Prince was at the apartment as a guest of the tenant. Prince alleged that his fall resulted from the negligent construction and maintenance of the railing balusters and that the railing balusters failed to comply with applicable building and safety codes. Specifically, Prince asserts that “[t]he excessively large gap in the landing railing [balusters] through which [he] fell was unreasonably dangerous.” We granted Simmons’ application for an interlocutory appeal from the trial court’s denial of his motion for summary judgment. For the following reasons, we find that Simmons was entitled to summary judgment and reverse.“Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. We review a grant or denial of summary judgment de novo and construe the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmovant.” (Citations omitted.) Gaskins v. Berry’s Boat Dock, 334 Ga. App. 642, 642 (780 SE2d 83) (2015).Construed in favor of Prince, the record shows that the incident occurred on the second floor of an apartment complex known as Simmons Apartments, located in Statesboro, Georgia. Simmons Apartments is owned and operated by Simmons, who constructed the apartment complex in 1975. The railing surrounding the second floor landing of the apartment at issue is supported by balusters which have gaps between them that are large enough for an adult to fall through.

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