Summary
The Connecticut Appellate Court affirmed summary judgment for an abutting landowner in a negligence action arising from injuries caused by a raised and uneven public sidewalk. The court held that the Jewett City charter provision requiring abutting owners to maintain sidewalks did not expressly shift liability for sidewalk defects to those owners, and that Connecticut law generally requires an explicit liability provision for such a private cause of action.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether Connecticut law recognizes a private cause of action against an abutting landowner for injuries caused by a defective public sidewalk when a statute or ordinance imposes a duty to maintain the sidewalk but does not expressly impose liability for resulting injuries.
- Whether section 21 of the charter of the borough of Jewett City expressly shifted liability for defective public sidewalks from the municipality to abutting landowners.
- Whether the trial court properly granted summary judgment to the abutting landowner.
Holdings
- An abutting landowner is not subject to a private cause of action for injuries caused by a defective public sidewalk unless a statute or ordinance expressly makes the landowner liable for those injuries.
- Summary judgment was properly granted because, under the applicable law, the plaintiff could not establish a legally cognizable claim against Joseph based solely on the charter's sidewalk-maintenance provision.
Key quotations
“Abutting owners have only been held liable for injuries from defective sidewalks where under charter provisions they were not only charged with the duty of keeping sidewalks in repair but also expressly made liable for injuries occasioned by defective condition thereof.” (60 Conn. App. at 261)
“It is a general rule of construction of statutes or ordinances which impose upon property owners the performance of a part of the duty of a municipality to the public that a legislative intent is indicated, unless it is plainly expressed otherwise, that a breach thereof shall be remedial only by the municipal government or by enforcement of a penalty prescribed therein, and that there is no right of action to an individual citizen specially injured in consequence of such breach.” (60 Conn. App. at 261-262)
“When a statute creates an exception to a general rule, it is to be construed strictly and its language is not to be extended beyond its evident intent.” (60 Conn. App. at 262)
Factual background
On October 19, 1995, Dorothy Dreher slipped and fell on a raised and uneven portion of a public sidewalk adjacent to a building owned by Charles Joseph, Jr. She alleged that Joseph, his tenant, and the borough failed to keep the sidewalk in proper repair. The borough charter required abutting landowners to keep adjacent sidewalks safe and repair defects, but did not expressly impose liability for injuries caused by defective sidewalks.
Procedural history
Dreher sued Charles Joseph, Jr., his tenant Charlene Schultz, and the borough of Jewett City after slipping on a raised and uneven portion of the public sidewalk adjacent to Joseph's building. Schultz's motion to strike was granted, and the claim against the borough remained pending. The trial court granted Joseph's motion for summary judgment, concluding that Connecticut law did not recognize a cause of action against an abutting landowner for injuries caused by defects in a public sidewalk absent a statute or ordinance expressly imposing liability. The Connecticut Appellate Court affirmed.