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Keywords

negligence
negligencecomparative negligence

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Foss v. Kincade, 766 N.W.2d 317

Facts

On October 15, 2003, three-year-old David Foss, Jr. was injured when a bookcase fell on him while visiting the home of Stephanie and Jeremy Kincade. David's mother, Peggy Foss, was present during the visit, which took place shortly after the Kincades had moved into the neighborhood. The Kincades had boxes around their home and did not consider the unsecured bookcase a hazard. After the accident, which resulted in serious injuries to David, his father filed a negligence claim against the Kincades, alleging their failure to secure the bookcase caused the injuries.

On the afternoon of October 15, 2003, Peggy Foss, David's mother and Stephanie Kincade's longtime friend, had taken David and his nine-year-old sister on a visit to the Kincade home.

Issue

Did the Kincades owe a legal duty to David Foss, Jr. to secure the bookcase, and was the harm that occurred foreseeable?

Whether an invitee child's injuries might also be causally linked to a parent's failure to supervise is question of comparative negligence, not a ground for extinguishing landowner's duty to maintain safe premises for social guests.

Rule

A landowner owes a duty to use reasonable care for the safety of all persons invited upon the premises, regardless of their status, and the foreseeability of harm is a key factor in determining that duty.

A landowner owed a duty 'to use reasonable care for the safety of all such persons invited upon the premises, regardless of the status of the individuals.'

Analysis

The court analyzed whether the Kincades had a duty to secure the bookcase by considering the foreseeability of harm. It concluded that while the Kincades acknowledged the potential for a bookcase to tip over, it was not reasonably foreseeable that a three-year-old child would attempt to climb it. The court emphasized that negligence law does not require homeowners to guard against every conceivable risk, particularly when the risk is not objectively reasonable to expect.

Although in most cases the question of foreseeability is an issue for the jury, the foreseeability of harm can be decided by the court as a matter of law when the issue is clear.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court affirmed the lower court's ruling, concluding that the Kincades had no duty to prevent the harm that occurred to David Foss, Jr. because it was not legally foreseeable.

Therefore, we affirm the decision of the district court.

Who won?

Kincades prevailed in the case because the court found that they did not have a legal duty to secure the bookcase, as the harm was not foreseeable.

The Kincades did not have a duty to secure bookcase to wall to prevent it from tipping over because it was not reasonably foreseeable that a three-year-old guest would injure himself by attempting to climb the bookcase.

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