On
July 10, 2013, District Judge Lynwood Smith issued an opinion in Garrett v. Walgreen Co., Inc., 2013 WL
349777 (N.D. Ala.), which is a “gift” to premises owners. Garrett went inside a Walgreen store on a
rainy day and slipped in a puddle of water, not at the entrance but around the
cash register area.
In
granting Walgreen’s summary-judgment motion, Judge Smith may have been correct
based on the particular facts, which included, Garrett was wearing flip-flops
and was aware of a potential problem, Walgreen had put down mats at the door
and put up warning signs, Garrett had walked around the store before the fall
in the area of the cashiers, the subject water was “clear” and nothing
prevented Garrett from viewing the floor.
The
“gift” is Judge Smith’s analysis of Alabama law regarding a “fall caused by
snow or rain,” including his statement that such falls are distinguishable from
falls in “usual” slip-and-fall cases.
For him, there is no duty on a premises owner to “stand constant vigil
with a mop or towel on rainy days.” To
recover, Garrett would have to show the presence of an unusual accumulation of
rain water or other circumstances requiring Walgreen to take affirmative
measures such as mopping, applying anti-slip compounds, or posting warnings,
presumably in the area of the fall.
Judge Smith appears to treat the
“normal” appearance of water inside a store during a rainy day as something
that a customer should have to look out for and prevent any slipping or falling
and to impose a duty on the storeowner to take remedial measures only if there
was an unusually large puddle that existed for some time.
