Summary Judgment Granted in Favor of Out-of-Possession Landlord

In the case of Bresnahan v. Indian Creek Health Care, Inc., No. 10535 of 2024, C.A. (C.P. Lawr. Co. July 31, 2026 Cox, P.J.), the court granted in part and denied in part a Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment in a premises liability case.

The Plaintiff filed suit alleging injuries as a result of a slip and fall on an alleged accumulation of liquid in a stairwell. Various Defendants affiliated with the property were sued.

Relative to the out-of-possession landlord, the court held that such a defendant could not be held liable without evidence that it retained control over the allegedly defective area.

With respect to one of that defendants, the court found that the Plaintiff failed to provide evidence that that defendant was involved in the control, maintenance, or repair of the premises. There was also no evidence established that that particular defendant had retained any control over the area where the Plaintiff allegedly fell.

A separate Motion for Summary Judgment filed by another defendant that was identified as the management company for the premises was denied.  The court found that sufficient evidence had been produced to support an inference that that defendant had control over the area of the premises in question.

Anyone wishing to review a copy of this decision may click this LINK.


Source: The Legal Intelligencer Common Pleas Case Alert, www.Law.com (Sept. 17, 2026).

Source of image:  Photo by Laura Cleffman on www.unsplash.com.

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