Trial Win: Jury Rejects Code Violation Theory in Premises Case

Trial Victory Alert! The Cardelli Lanfear team led by Partner Carl Lanfear obtained a No Cause verdict on behalf of our client, an owner of an apartment complex in a premises liability claim. Plaintiff claimed she tripped and fell while walking out of her own apartment. Plaintiff hired an expert to inspect the property to find any possible code violations that could have existed at the time of the incident. The paid expert found an elevation that was ½ inch higher than code specifications. The Oakland County jury was not distracted by this tactic, looked at all of the evidence and concluded that this minor code violation was not the proximate cause of Plaintiff’s injuries. The jury concluded that Plaintiff had walked over that threshold hundreds of times before the incident and thousands of times after the incident without issue, therefore she most likely tripped because she was not paying attention as she walked. We are grateful that the jury kept its promise to get the whole story before making a decision. Also grateful to have clients who allow us to try cases.