No Notice Still Means No Problem for Property Owners

In Smith v Empire Property Investments, Inc, unpublished opinion per curiam of the Court of Appeals, issued August 10, 2023 (Docket No. 361468), the panel unanimously found that an out-of-possession landlord had no actual or constructive notice of the allegedly deteriorated back porch of the Plaintiff’s daughter’s residence and therefore, the premises liability suit was properly dismissed under MCR 2.116(C)(10).

Smith illustrates that, while the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Kandil-Elsayed v F & E Oil, Inc, ___ Mich ___ (2023) (Docket No. 162907) complicates the defense of many premises liability suits, notice defenses are unaffected by that decision, and continue to be potentially dispositive.