Running Into Trouble: Homeowner Owes No Duty to Jogger Who Tripped on Uneven Sidewalk

When a plaintiff claims that his injury resulted from “an allegedly dangerous condition on the land, the action sounds in premises liability rather than ordinary negligence; this is true even when the plaintiff alleges that the premises possessor created the condition giving rise to the plaintiff’s injury.” Bazzi v City of Dearborn Heights, unpublished opinion, p 3.

For “a party to be subject to premises liability in favor of persons coming on the land, the party must possess and control the property at issue but not necessarily be its owner.” Id. at 5. If a defendant “does not possess or control the property upon which the dangerous condition exists,” then they “are not subject to plaintiff’s premises liability claim.” Id.

Under the common law, “a landowner is under no obligation to repair and maintain an abutting public sidewalk.” Id. at 4.

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