Successful Summary Judgment for Premises Liability Defendant

Attorney Decker recently won the dismissal of his client, a snow plow operator, in a Mercer County lawsuit.  The Plaintiff lived in a residential community which had retained an independent contractor to perform winter maintenance services.  The plaintiff fell in her neighbor’s driveway, sustaining serious injuries to her shoulder and wrist which required surgery.  She filed suit against the residential community and the snow plow operator.

The Court agreed with the defense and ruled that the “Hills and Ridges Doctrine” shielded the snow plow contractor from liability where the plaintiff’s own expert opined that 1.4 inches of snow had fallen and had only stopped falling approximately 2 hours before the accident.  Accordingly, Summary Judgment was entered on behalf of all defendants.

On August 27, 2021, the Pennsylvania Superior Court entered an Opinion and Order denying the Plaintiff’s appeal and Affirming the Order of the Trial Court.