Torts - Negligence at the Movie Theater

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One evening, Kelly went to the movie theatre. When the movie was over, Kelly needed to use the restroom. As she emerged from the bathroom stall and approached the sink, Kelly slipped on a puddle of water in front of the sink, crashed to the floor and landed painfully on her shoulder. Earlier in the day, the movie theatre knew the bathroom sink pipe had broken and called a plumber to come fix it. The plumber called the theatre late in the afternoon and said she could not arrive until the next day. The theater tried to shut off the water to the sink but could not. The theater did send an employee in with a mop every 15 minutes to mop up the water. However, this did not prevent the floor from becoming slippery. Kelly wishes to sue the theatre for its failure to maintain the bathroom in a safe condition. On what theory or theories, if any, can Kelly recover from movie theatre? Discuss. ________________________________________________________________________ A. Kelly v. Movie Theatre Negligence Negligence requires a showing that a duty was owed, that the duty was breached, and that the breach was the actual and proximate cause of damages. Special Duty – Land Occupier - Invitee A special duty arises in circumstances involving a land occupier. An invitee is one who enters upon the land of another with the owner’s permission for the purpose related to the activity. The landowner owes an invitee a duty of care to inspect and discover any dangerous condition and to make the premises safe. Kelly went to the Movie Theatre to see a movie. Hence, Kelly is a social guest entering upon the premises with Movie Theatre’s permission and, thus, Kelly is an invitee. Since Kelly was an invitee, The Movie Theatre owed a duty to Kelly to inspect the premises, discover any known dangers, and remove and/or correct any known dangers. Breach The Movie Theatre

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