Ferber v. Orange Blossom Center, Inc., 79-210
| Decision Date | 24 September 1980 |
| Docket Number | No. 79-210,79-210 |
| Parties | George A. FERBER and Lillian Ferber, his wife, Appellants, v. ORANGE BLOSSOM CENTER, INC., et al., Appellees. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
Ronald H. Walker, Orlando, for appellants.
Reinald Werrenrath, III, Orlando, for appellees.
George and Lillian Ferber sued Orange Blossom Center, Inc., the owner of a shopping center, another owner, and Orange Blossom's liability insurer for injuries suffered by George when he tripped and fell on a ramp leading from the parking area to the sidewalk in front of the Pantry Pride store in the center. Ferber worked at Pantry Pride as a meat cutter. At the close of the plaintiffs' case the trial court granted the defendants' motion for a directed verdict, and entered a judgment for the defendants. We reverse and remand this matter for trial because there was evidence which would have supported a verdict for the plaintiffs. Pittman v. Volusia County, 380 So.2d 1192 (Fla. 5th DCA 1980).
The evidence in this case established that Orange Blossom owned and leased the shopping center and, under the lease, was obligated to keep the sidewalk, ramp, and curb in "good repair." The ramp where Ferber fell was in extremely poor condition. There were chips and cracks in the cement surface, and holes where the surface had chipped away, particularly in the seam between the ramp and the sidewalk. The condition of the ramp had deteriorated over a four year period, and the landowner failed to repair or maintain the ramp during that period of time. Other persons slipped and fell on the ramp, and Pantry Pride received accident reports of such incidents. Ferber himself had slipped on the ramp and he had seen others fall on it. He testified his foot slipped on some loose flaky material near the top of the ramp, although he was not able to pinpoint the exact item that caused his to lose his footing.
A person like Ferber, clearly a "business invitee," who is injured by a hazardous condition existing on land owned by another is no longer barred from recovery because of his equal or even superior knowledge of the hazard, where the landowner knew or should have known of the condition and failed to keep the premises in good repair. Pittman v. Volusia County; Zambito v. Southland Recreation Enterprises, Inc., 383 So.2d 989 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980); Bennett v. Mattison, 382 So.2d 873 (Fla. 1st DCA 1980); Metropolitan Dade County v. Yelvington, --- So.2d ---- ...
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