Title: Collier v. Duprel

State: alabama

Issuer: Alabama Supreme Court

Document:

480 So. 2d 1196 (1985)
Chesley Lee COLLIER
v.
Eunice Martin DUPREL and Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury, Inc.
84-580.

Supreme Court of Alabama.
November 8, 1985.
*1197 George H. Howell of Howell, Sarto and Howell, Prattville, for appellant.
Edward B. Parker II of Balch & Bingham, Montgomery, for appellee Eunice Martin Duprel.
J. Donald Reynolds, Montgomery, for appellee Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury, Inc.
SHORES, Justice.
Chesley Lee Collier broke his leg at approximately 11:30 p.m. on February 26, 1983, after tripping over an orange electrical cord used to supply electricity to two display signs at the Clearview Lounge, operated by Daniel Wainwright in Prattville, Alabama. The cord was plugged into an outlet located in the exterior wall of the building and was draped inches above an adjacent sidewalk. Collier was on the premises as a member of a band hired to play at the lounge.
The premises were owned by Eunice Duprel, who had leased them to Wainwright on July 1, 1981. They had previously been leased to Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury, Inc. Wainwright owned a portable display sign, which he used for advertising. It was placed next to a permanent sign which, at one time, was supplied with electricity through an underground electrical cable. However, during Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury and Wainwright's leases, the extension cord came to be used as the method of supplying electricity to the signs.
Collier filed suit against Wainwright in the Circuit Court of Autauga County and, by an amendment to his complaint, later added Duprel and Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury. He alleged that he was a business invitee on the premises and that Duprel negligently or wantonly caused or allowed a dangerous condition to exist there and failed to warn him of that condition. He also alleged that Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury originally utilized the above-ground cord to supply electricity to the permanent sign. Collier appeals from summary judgments granted in favor of Duprel and Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury.[1] We affirm.
In Sanders v. Vincent, 367 So. 2d 943, 944 (Ala.1979), the Court stated the rule in Alabama:
Eunice Duprel's affidavit, which was attached to her motion for summary judgment, reads, in pertinent part, as follows:
Collier's answer in response to the motions for summary judgment, reads, in pertinent part, as follows:
Our review of Eunice Duprel's deposition, as referenced in Collier's answer, does not indicate that she "inspected" the premises after Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury vacated. Although it was undisputed that there was no covenant to repair, she did do some general clean up and maintenance work, including painting and replacing broken window panes. However, she did not examine the premises with Wainwright prior to his occupation of it.
Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. Rule 56(e), A.R.Civ.P. All reasonable doubts concerning the existence of a genuine issue of fact must be resolved against the moving party. Fountain v. Phillips, 404 So. 2d 614 (Ala.1981).
Collier contends that a question of fact for the jury exists as to whether Eunice Duprel knew of the existence of the electrical cord when she cleaned up after Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury vacated. Assuming that she did, summary judgment was proper in this case because such knowledge is not material. The alleged defect was not a "latent" one. A latent defect is defined as "[a] hidden or concealed defect," "[o]ne which could not be discovered by reasonable and customary inspection." Black's Law Dictionary (5th ed. 1979). It is undisputed, as Collier states in his answer, that when Wainwright took possession of the premises, he observed the cord lying on the ground unplugged. Wainwright testified further on deposition that he, or one of his employees, plugged it in. Therefore, the manner in which the electricity was supplied to the signs could not have been concealed from him by Eunice Duprel.
Summary judgment was also properly granted in favor of Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury. It was undisputed that Collier was injured on February 26, 1983, and that Wainwright had leased the premises on July 1, 1981. On the date of his injury, Collier was the business invitee of Wainwright. Montgomery Lincoln-Mercury owed no duty to Collier merely because, during the time of its lease, it may have used the cord to supply electricity to a sign in a similar manner.
The judgment of the trial court is affirmed.
AFFIRMED.
TORBERT, C.J., and MADDOX, JONES and HOUSTON, JJ., concur.
[1]  The judgments were certified final pursuant to Rule 54(b), A.R.Civ.P.