Justice Joan Madden
Brooks sought to recover damages for personal injuries she allegedly sustained when she tripped and fell on a cellar door on the sidewalk near Employees Only LLC. Defendants own the LLC and leased the ground floor and basement to non-party Zingara to be used as a cafe and restaurant. The LLC took over Zingara’s lease. Brooks testified she did not notice that one of the cellar doors was ajar before her foot was caught in it. Defendants argued as the cellar door was not a defective condition or inherently dangerous, plaintiff’s fall was due to her own negligence as she failed to see an open and obvious condition. Brooks argued defendants created a dangerous tripping hazard by leaving a cellar door in an uneven and raised condition. The court stated the issue of whether a condition was open and obvious was generally a jury question, stating various defects or hazards may likely to be overlooked because of their nature or location. Here, the record raised issues of fact if the LLC breached its duty to maintain the property in a reasonably safe condition regarding the cellar doors on the sidewalk by improperly closing the doors or leaving them partially opened. Thus, summary judgment was denied.
