CHARLES F. WILLIAMS AND THOMAS E. SKINNER, APPELLANTS,
v.
J. E. HOLLAND AND MYRA C. HOLLAND, HIS WIFE, APPELLEES

Fla. 1st DCA | 1968-01-11
No. 1-236
CARROLL, DONALD K., Acting C. J., and RAWLS and SPECTOR, JJ., concur.
205 So. 2d 682 Florida District Court of Appeal, First District (1968) Positive Treatment
Cited by 7 cases

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Synopsis

In a slip-and-fall personal injury case, appellants challenged a jury verdict for the plaintiff, arguing there was insufficient evidence that the plaintiff slipped on a foreign substance rather than merely a wet surface, and that defendants lacked notice of any hazard. The court affirmed, finding competent evidence supported the jury's finding that a foreign substance accumulated in the entrance vestibule and that defendants knew or should have known of it.


Holding

The court held that there was sufficient evidence to support the jury verdict. The evidence showed both the presence of a foreign substance (slush, debris, and sediment) at the site of the fall and that defendants knew or should have known of its accumulation, which goes beyond merely proving a slick or wet surface.


Key Quotes

“the right to recover in a slip and fall case requires more than a showing simply that the surface upon which the injured fell was slick, smooth or wet”

The court's acknowledgment of the general rule cited by appellants, establishing the standard for slip-and-fall liability

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Facts & Procedural History

The accident occurred at a Jacksonville Beach hardware store several days after a hurricane, in misty, rainy conditions. The plaintiff fell in the ves…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

This is an appeal from a judgment entered in favor of plaintiffs pursuant to a jury verdict in a personal injury suit arising out of a so-called slip and fall accident.

The incident giving rise to this action occurred at Jacksonville Beach,. Florida, several days following the height of a hurricane. At the time of the accident, it was “misty” and had been raining for the preceding day or two during the storm. The scene of the fall was the vestibule-like entrance to a hardware store where the appellant, Mrs. Holland, had gone to make some purchases of supplies needed because of the hurricane.

In their complaint, plaintiffs alleged that the defendants had permitted an accumulation of some foreign substance to build up on the vestibule so that it became hazardous and slippery and further alleged that the defendants were negligent by permitting an accumulation of a foreign substance at such entrance way. Appellants’ principal assault on the judgment appealed is that there was no competent probative evidence that the plaintiff slipped on a foreign substance; and, secondly, there was no evidence of notice or knowledge on the part of the defendant that any foreign substance was present.

In support of their grounds for reversal, appellants cite a series of cases holding that the right to recover in a slip and fall case requires more than a showing simply that the surface upon which the injured fell was slick, smooth or wet. Exemplary of this line of cases is Bucholtz v. City of Jacksonville, 72 So.2d 52, 53 (Fla.1954). We agree with this proposition advanced by appellants insofar as it goes. However, the contention of the plaintiffs goes beyond a showing of the mere slick, smooth or wet condition of the vestibule floor on which she fell. Rather, plaintiffs’ case rests on both the presence of a foreign substance at the site of the fall and the accumulation of such foreign substance which was permitted to occur by the defendants. Illustrative of the evidence given which could reasonably form the basis of the jury’s finding of guilt was the testimony of the defendant’s son who was working in the store at the time of the fall late on the day in question. He testified that on the day in question nothing had been done to remove from the entrance foyer any of the “slush, or debris, or sediment” which had accumulated as a result of the patrons walking in the store all day. This admission was made after he had testified that such foreign substance had been tracked in all day.

We have examined the record and find testimony which if believed by the jury, as it apparently was, sustains the finding that there was present at the scene and time of the fall a foreign substance on which plaintiff fell and, further, that the presence of such foreign substance was known or should have been known to the defendants. While there were conflicts in the evidence as to these factors, the resolution of such conflicts was within the jury’s province.

We have further considered the other questions urged by appellants for reversal and find that they do not constitute reversible error.

Affirmed.

CARROLL, DONALD K., Acting C. J., and RAWLS and SPECTOR, JJ., concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Americana OF BAL Harbour, Inc. v. Kiester, 245 So. 2d 121 (Fla. 3d DCA 1971)
    …the defendants, and that the stairway was negligently maintained and inspected. While there were conflicts in the evidence as to these factors, the resolution of such conflicts was within the jury’s province. See Williams v. Holland, Fla.App. 1968, 205 So. 2d 682, 683; Barker v. Silverforb, 201 S.W. 2d 408 (Mo.App.1947); see generally, Annotation, 58 A.L.R.2d 1178 (1958). Appellant’s second point on appeal is that the trial court erred in denying defendant’s motion for new trial where plaintiff’s closing ar…
  • Lon Walker v. Burdines Federated Dep't Stores, Inc., 568 So. 2d 542 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990)
    …ng of negligence on Burdines’ part. See Nance v. Winn Dixie Stores, 436 So. 2d 1075 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983), rev. denied, 447 So. 2d 889 (Fla.1984); Whitten v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Company, 430 So. 2d 528 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983); Williams v. Holland, 205 So. 2d 682 (Fla. 1st DCA 1968). REVERSED and REMANDED. DAUKSCH and GOSHORN, JJ., concur.…
  • Leaton v. Compass Grp., Inc. (M.D. Fla. 2021)
    …t one slips and falls on a floor does not constitute evidence of negligence.” Feinman v. Target Corp., No. 11-62480-CIV, 2012 WL 6061745, at *4 (S.D. Fla. Dec. 6, 2012) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted); see also Williams v. Holland, 205 So. 2d 682, 683 (Fla. 1st DCA 1968) (“[T]he right to recover in a slip and fall case requires more than a showing simply that the surface upon which the injured fell was slick, smooth or wet.”). “Where the facts of a case are undisputed and the evidence ulti…

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