GEORGE JACKSON, APPELLANT,
v.
GREG SWEAT, D/B/A GREG'S VIDEO, APPELLEE
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Florida appellate court reversed dismissal of negligence claim where plaintiff alleged defendant business owner breached duty of reasonable care by leaving store lit and unlocked with silent alarm, causing plaintiff's arrest and emotional distress.
A negligence complaint alleging that a business owner left his store lit and unlocked with a silent burglar alarm, causing the plaintiff customer to unknowingly trigger the alarm and be arrested, states a legally sufficient cause of action and should not be dismissed.
[1] A negligence complaint need not be a model of clarity to survive a motion to dismiss if it adequately alleges all four elements of negligence: duty, breach, causation, an…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“To state a cause of action for negligence, a plaintiff must allege that (1) the defendant owed some legal duty to the plaintiff; (2) the defendant breached that duty; (3) the plaintiff was injured as a result of the defendant's breach of duty; and (4) the injury caused damage.”
Court restates the four-element negligence standard from Paterson v. Deeb
Jackson, a customer, entered Sweat's video store which appeared open but was actually closed with a silent burglar alarm set. Jackson unknowingly trig…
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PER CURIAM.
Appellant, the plaintiff in the trial court, seeks review of a final order dismissing with prejudice a negligence claim against appellee. To state a cause of action for negligence, a plaintiff must allege that (1) the defendant owed some legal duty to the plaintiff; (2) the defendant breached that duty; (3) the plaintiff was injured as a result of the defendant’s breach of duty; and (4) the injury caused damage. Paterson v. Deeb, 472 So. 2d 1210, 1214 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985). Here, appellant alleged that he was a customer of appellee and that, therefore, appellee owed him a duty to exercise reasonable care; that appellee breached that duty when he left his store lit and unlocked, creating the appearance that it was open, while setting a silent burglar alarm; that, when appellant entered the store, he unknowingly set off the alarm, causing the police to respond and arrest him; and that, as a result, appellant suffered humiliation, embarrassment and emotional distress, causing him damage. Although the complaint is not a model of clarity, these allegations are legally sufficient to withstand a motion to dismiss for failure to state a cause of action. Accordingly, the trial court erred when it dismissed the claim on that ground. The final order of dismissal is reversed, and the matter is remanded with directions to reinstate the claim.
REVERSED and REMANDED, with directions.
WEBSTER, DAVIS and BENTON, JJ., concur.
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Kayfetz v. A.M. Best Roofing, Inc., 832 So. 2d 784 (Fla. 3d DCA 2002)…recover on his negligence claim, Plaintiff merely needed to prove that (1) Defendant owed him a legal duty; (2) Defendant breached that duty; (3) he suffered injury as a result of that breach; and (4) the injury caused damage. See Jackson v. Sweat, 783 So. 2d 1207 (Fla. 1st DCA 2001). In all likelihood, the testimony of Defendant’s expert led the jury to incorrectly conclude that Plaintiffs obligations under the South Florida Building Code excused Defendant of its responsibilities under Florida tort law. It…
Authorities Cited
- Polly Suzanne Paterson v. Deeb, 472 So. 2d 1210 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985)