Buggy Tracks Smear Wal-Mart's Summary Judgment Argument
In Johnson v. Wal-Mart Louisiana, LLC the plaintiff, Ellen Johnson, was shopping at Wal-Mart and pushing her cart down one of the aisles. As she turned to proceed up another aisle, her cart began to slide and she slipped and fell, injuring her left knee.
Plaintiff filed suit against Wal-Mart and alleged that the sole cause of the accident was Wal-Mart’s failure to keep the floors free from spills. Wal-Mart filed a motion for summary judgment and argued that plaintiff could not carry her burden of proof under Louisiana’s Slip and Fall Statute, as interpreted by the Louisiana Supreme Court in White v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. In White, the Louisiana Supreme Court specifically addressed the question of constructive notice and held:
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Though there is no bright line time period, a claimant must show that ‘the condition existed for such a period of time . .’ Whether the period of time is sufficiently lengthy that a merchant should have discovered the condition is necessarily a fact question; however, there remains the prerequisite showing of some time period. A claimant who simply shows that the condition existed without an additional showing that the condition existed for some time before the fall has not carried the burden of proving constructive notice as mandated by the statute. Though the time period need not be specific in minutes or hours, constructive notice requires that the claimant prove the condition existed for some time period prior to the fall. This is not an impossible burden.
In the Johnson case, the Court found that plaintiff had presented sufficient evidence to create a material issue of fact as to whether Wal-Mart had constructive notice of the spill. Specifically, plaintiff submitted evidence that the spill was on the floor for some period of time. The Court based its finding on the fact that both plaintiff and a store employee testified that the spill was spread in a circular puddle over about a three to four foot area and that plaintiff’s buggy left tracks in the puddle after it went through it. Additionally, a Wal-Mart employee was working nearby and was the first on the scene of the accident.
Take-Away: As long as a plaintiff is able to produce evidence that a spill existed for some period of time, however uncertain the amount of time may be, courts will be reluctant to grant summary judgment in favor of the merchant.
