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In accidents on premises, the doctrine as put forth in Oliveri v. MBTA, 363 Mass. 165 (1973) has controlled. It has meant that slip and fall cases involving a foreign substance, whether in a supermarket or otherwise, typically require facts to come within at least one of three categories in order to demonstrate defendant’s lack of reasonable care: 1) defendant created or had actual knowledge of condition, 2) proximity of defendant’s employees to dangerous condition, or 3) evidence of organic matter, such as deterioration, that might indicate amount of time that condition was present. There has been some talk that a more recent case, Sheehan v. Roche Brothers, 448 Mass. 780 (2007) has modified the strictures of Oliveri, although, frankly, I think it is dangerous to overemphasize the scope of the Sheehan doctrine.
Our firm has had significant success with supermarket cases and in other cases involving the liability of a landowner or one in control of premises. It is true that a necessary component for a favorable result involves proving some knowledge (actual or constructive) on the part of the defendant’s employees and a failure to remedy in a satisfactory way the hazardous condition. Usually, however, discovery reveals that there was some actual knowledge on some employee’s part and there was a failure to correct the situation so that no one would be injured. Obviously, there is no guarantee of success but I have been struck by how depositions have yielded the very information that is needed to prove negligence under the criteria set out above.
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5.0/5.0I just wanted to drop a quick note to say thank you to Santora Colleen for securing such a great outcome on my wife case. We really appreciate all your hard work, the way you handled the negotiations, and how you kept us informed every step of the wa...
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Colleen has been incredibly thoughtful, supportive, and professional throughout every step of our case. She guided us carefully through the process, always taking the time to answer our questions and ensure we understood our options. She consistently...
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I had the pleasure of working with Attorney Colleen Santora after I was involved in a car accident. She was very attentive, professional, and courteous throughout our entire case involvement. I appreciate everything she did to help me. She is wonderf...
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I was in a terrible car accident. I was referred to Colleen by a friend. She is amazing! Answered my every call, text and fought for me. Being a hairdresser for 40yrs it was horrible trying to cut hair with a broken hand, but in the end Colleen got m...
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Colleen Santora is an outstanding attorney. I reached out to her after I was hit by a car as a pedestrian and she walked me through every step of the process with clarity and patience. She’s a fantastic communicator, extremely responsive and alway...
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