Hefler v. Remke Markets, Inc.

Citations

• 2021 Ohio 2694

Syllabus

NEGLIGENCE—SLIP AND FALL: In a slip-and-fall case, the trial court erred by granting summary judgment in favor of the grocery storeowner where a genuine issue of material fact remained as to whether the storeowner had constructive notice of the puddle of water that had accumulated on the floor of the frozen food aisle due to a leak from a freezer. Where evidence showed that the leak was caused by condensation developing on freezer door due to defective door seals, the puddle was large in width, the puddle was located next to the freezer door, and there was a trail of water leading from the freezer to the puddle, the evidence gave rise to a reasonable inference that the puddle developed gradually over time therefore, reasonable minds could differ as to whether the condition had existed for a sufficient length of time such that the storeowner had constructive notice of the puddle and that failure to remove it or warn customers of it constituted a lack of ordinary care.