In Pareja v. Princeton International Properties, decided on June 10, the New Jersey Supreme Court held that commercial landowners generally do not have a duty to remove snow and ice while a storm is ongoing. The court noted that the common law precluded recovery from landowners based upon conditions on the sidewalk, including those related to snow and ice, although the court has created exceptions relating to commercial landowners.

The majority found that its precedent “supports the adoption of the ongoing storm rule” precluding recovery during an ongoing storm, with “two exceptions that could impose a duty: if the owner’s conduct increases the risk, or the danger is pre-existing.” The court reviewed its precedent creating a “duty on commercial landowners to remove snow and ice only after the cessation of the hazardous precipitation.”