Betty Belmore v. Cheryl Petterutti

Syllabus

This case arose as a result of a slip-and-fall incident that occurred on the property of the defendant, Cheryl Petterutti, which led to the plaintiff, Betty Belmore, suffering multiple injuries that required numerous reparative surgeries. The plaintiff thereafter filed suit in Kent County Superior Court, alleging negligence on the part of the defendant and seeking damages for her injuries. The defendant moved for summary judgment, and judgment entered in the defendant's favor. The plaintiff then timely appealed to this Court. The Supreme Court held that, when addressing proximate causation in determining whether or not to grant the defendant's motion for summary judgment, the hearing justice erred by passing upon an issue that is ordinarily inappropriate for summary judgment. Accordingly, the Supreme Court vacated the judgment of the Superior Court and remanded the case to that court.