Published Since 1865 Boston, Mass. August 6, 2010 Vol. 267 No. 3
Mass. SJC Reverses View of
Liability for Slip-and-Fall Accidents
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
last week reversed the longstanding “natural accumulation”
rule regarding slip-and-fall accidents on snow and ice, ushering in a new field of liability for property owners.
In the case of Papadopoulos, et. al. v. Target Corporation, et. al., the SJC decided that nearly a century of case
law should be set aside in favor of holding property owners
liable for snow and ice-related injuries.
alongside a median strip. The parking lot had been plowed,
but some snow and ice remained, particularly on the median strip where plows had deposited much of the snow. “As
he proceeded toward his automobile after leaving the store,
he slipped on a piece of ice that had frozen to the pavement.
The ice on which the plaintiff tripped either had fallen from
the snow piled on the median or had formed when snow
melted and ran off the pile and then refroze to the pavement
of the parking lot,” commented the Court.
In this case, the plaintiff went to a Target store in Danvers
on a day when the temperature was below freezing. He
parked in a handicapped space near the store’s entrance,
continued on page 17
A lower court judge ruled that the ice was a “natural accumulation” and existing case law holds that the property
owner is not violating the duty of reasonable care by fail-
N.H. JUA Rule Changes
In This Issue
Contested by Policyholders
Mass. Legis. Passes
MAIA-Promoted Bill
5
RIMS Says Storms
Could Change Market
5
CONCORD, N.H. — Opponents of new rules proposed by the New Hampshire
Insurance Department for the state’s Medical Malpractice Joint Underwriting
Association strongly criticized the Department for what they call a second attempt to withdraw surplus funds from the JUA.
Blumenthal Can’t
Share Subpoenaed Info
5
Conn. Retrieves $600K in 2nd Qtr.
8
Insurers Pleased by
Multi-Peril Bill Failure
9
New Hampshire Insurance Commissioner Roger Sevigny asserted in a commentary submitted to The Standard that, as a result of litigation of the surplus
funds, the existing rules “leave many important questions unanswered.”
Standard Answers:
Wedding Insurance
12
Public Disagrees On Suing Insurers
13
Mass. DOI Settles Tufts Rate Case
14
“In addition, our examination has focused on preserving the JUA’s exemption
continued on page 22
PIA Launches Branding Guide
14
Questionable Claims Rising – NICB
15
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NAMIC, RIMS, AIA Weigh In on TRIA
16
Conning Sees “Anemic” Growth
16
NCCI Files N.H. Comp Request
22
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