Question

Background: You are the assistant manager of THREADS, a retail clothing store located in a shopping mall in Bergen County. In recent months you have had a series of difficult experiences in the course of your employment, as follows:

1. Two customers in their late teens (D) & (E) ask where the men’s room is and an employee directs them there. The floor of the hall leading to the men’s room was wet because there had just been a flood from a leaking toilet, that you were going to have fixed, but you didn’t get around to it. You did post a sign in the area that stated “caution – wet floor”, but D and E were fooling around shoving each other and may have not noticed the sign. D slipped and fell on the wet floor and dislocated his shoulder. About a week prior to the incident, an employee (Bertha) also slipped and fell in the same area (the floor was wet that day from the leaking toilet) while approaching the ladies room and injured her wrist. Lawyers hired by D and Bertha have threatened to sue THREADS.

Discuss the possible claims and defenses of the parties and identify the legal issues involved.

Answer 1

Below are the possible claims and defenses of the parties and legal issues involved:

1. Customer D: Since Customer D fell on the wet floor even after proper Caution sign was put up by THREADS that the floor was wet and customers must have been careful. Hence in this case, the company is not at fault and the incident happened due to negligence of Customer D. Hence court must decide in favor of THREADS. Customer D's defense would be that the incident happened due to company's negligence and they should have repaired the leaking toilet and dried the floor before letting customers use the washroom.

2. Bertha: Since Bertha also suffered injuries due to fall and there was probably no sign at the time of her slipping, hence in this case THREADS was at fault and decision would be in favor of Bertha. Bertha's defense would be that due to company's negligence, the incident happened and she should be fully compensated for it.

3. THREADS: The company could be charged by the court for causing injury to Bertha from the slippage since the company was negligent on it's part which caused injury to Bertha. However in case of Customer D, the company put up caution sign hence the court must not charge the company in that case. Company's defense would be that the staff and customers must have been careful while walking and must have noticed the leakage and wet floor while going to the washroom.