Filing # 108374031 E=Filed 06/04/202010:47:53 AM 

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 19`h 

JUDICIAL CIRCUIT 1N AND FOR 

INDIAN RIVER COLTITY, FLORIDA 

CASE NO.: 312020CA000355= 

SANDRA ORTIZ ESPINOZA, 

Plaintiff, 

vs. 

DOLLAR TREE STORES INC. Ctate: ~'l_ 1' ~ Time: 

' ' IVICN #111 

is a certified process server in the 

Defendant. Circuit and County Courts in and for the 

/ Second Judicial Circuit 

SUMMONS 

THE STATE OF FLORIDA: 

To Each Sheriff of the State: 

YOU ARE CO:vIMANDED to serve this Summons and a copy of the Complaint in the 

above styled cause upon the following Defendant: 

DOLLAR TREE STORES,.INC _ 

c/o Corporation Service Company, Registered Agent 

1201 Hays Street 

Tallahassee, FL 32301-2525 

Said defendant is required to serve written defenses to the Complaint on CHRISTOPHER 

M. ROTUNDA, ESQ., Plaintiff s attorney, whose address is: 

CHRISTOPHER M. ROTUNDA, ESQ. 

Graves Thomas Rotunda Injury Law Group 

3885 20111Street 

Vero Beach, FL 32960 

within 20 days after service of this Summons on said defendant, exclusive of the day of service, 

and to file the original of the defenses with the clerk of this courc either before service on Plaintiffs 

attorney or immediately thereafter. If defendant fails to do so, a default will be entered against 

that defendant for the relief demanded in the Complaint. 

WITNESS my hand and the seal of said Court this _ day of June, 2020. 

Jeffrey R Smith 

Clerk of Court 

(COURT SEAL) By . hco~'^'r% ' a~a— 

Deputy _ + 

(.,l 

3 

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CDU~I\. 

Case 2:20-cv-14199-KAM Document 1-2 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/23/2020 Page 1 of 7
IMPORTANT 

A lawsuit has been filed against you. You have twenty (20) calendar days after this summons is 

served on you to file a written response to the attached Coniplaint in this Court. A phone call will 

not protect you; your written response, including the above case number and named parties, must 

be filed if you want the Court to hear your case. If you do not file your response on time, you may 

lose the case, and your wages, money and property may thereaffter be taken without further warning 

from the Court. There are other legal requirements. You may want to ca11 an attorney right away. 

If you do not know an attorney, you may call an attorney referral service or a legal aid office (listed 

in the phone book). If you choose to file a written response yourself, at the same time you file 

your written response to the Court, you must also mail or take a carbon copy or photocopy of your 

written responses to the "Plaintiff/Plaintiff s Attomey" named below' 

CHRISTOPHER M. ROTU-NDA, ESQUIRE 

3885 20a' Street 

Vero Beach, FL 32960 

IVIPORTANTE 

Usted ha sido demandado Iegalmente. Tiene veinte (20) dias, contados a partir del. recibo de esta 

notificacion, para responder por escrito a la demanda en este corte. Una Ilamada telefonica no lo 

protegera; su respuesta por escrito a la demanda, incluyendo el niimero del caso y las partes 

interesadas, debe ser recibida por la corte para que su caso sea presentado ante el Juez. Si usted no 

contesta la demanda a tiempo, pudiese perder el caso y podria ser despojado de sus ingresos y 

propiedades, o privado de sus derechos, sin previo aviso del tribunal. Existen otros requisitos 

legales. Si lo desea, puede llamar a un abogado, Ilamando a una de las oficinas de asistencia legal 

que aparecen en la guia telef6nica. Si desea responder a la demanda por su cuenta, al mismo 

tiempo en que presenta su respuesta ante el tribunal, debera usted enviar por correo o entregar una 

copia de su respuesta a la persona denominada abajo como "Plaintiff/Plaintiffs Attorney" 

(Demandante o Abogado del Demandante). 

IMPORTANT 

Des poursuites judiciaries ont ete entreprises contre vous. Vous avez 20 jours consecutifs a partir 

de la date de 1'assignation de cette citation pour deposer une reponse ecrita a la plainte ci jointe 

aupres de ce Tribunal. Un simple coup de letelphone est insuffisant pour vous proteger, vous etes 

oblige de deposer votre reponse ecrite, avec mention du numero de dossier ci-dessus et du riom 

des parties nommees ici, si vous souhaitez que le Tribunal entende votre cause. Si vous ne deposez 

pas votre reponse ecrite dans le relai requis, vous risquez de perdre la caus ainsi que votre salaire, 

votre argent, et vos biens peuvent etre saisais par la suite, sans aucun preavis ulterieur du Tribunal. 

Il y a d'autres obligations juridiques et vous pouvez requerir les services immediats d`un avocat. 

Si vour ne connaissez pas d'avocat, vous pourriez telephoner a un service de reference d'avoeats 

ou a un bureau d'assistance juridique (figurant a 1'annuaire de telephones). Si vous choisissez de 

deposer vous-meme une reponse ecrite, il vous faudra egalement, en merne temps que cette 

formalite, faire parvenir ou expedier une copie au carbone ou une photocipie de votre reponse 

ecrite au "Plaintiff/Plaintiffs Attorney" (Plaignant ou a son avocat) nomme ci-dessous. 

Case 2:20-cv-14199-KAM Document 1-2 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/23/2020 Page 2 of 7
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 19th 

JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR 

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA 

CASE NO.: 

SANDRA ORTIZ ESPINOZA, 

Plaintiff, 

vs. 

DOLLAR TREE STORES, INC., 

Defe.ndant. 

/ 

COMPLAINT 

Plaintiff, SANDRA ORTIZ ESPINOZA ("Plaintiffl'), sues Defendant, DOLLAR TREE 

STORES, INC., and alleges as follows: 

1. This is an action for damages which exceed $30,000.00, exclusive of costs, interest 

and attorneys' fees. 

2. At all times material to this action, Plaintiff was a resident of Indian River County. 

3. At alI times material to this action, Defendant, DOLLAR TREE STORES, INC. 

("DOLLAR TREE"), was a Foreign Profit Corporation that was registered to do bus'iness, and was 

actually conducting business, in Indian River County, Florida. 

4. The subject incident which forms the basis of this Complaint occurred in Indian 

River County, Florida. 

5. At all times material to this action, Defendant,.DOLLAR TREE, owned, operated, 

controlled, and/or maintained the business premises located at 5890 20`hStreet, Vero Beach, Indian 

River County, Florida. 

Case 2:20-cv-14199-KAM Document 1-2 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/23/2020 Page 3 of 7
6. On or about July 5, 2018, Plaintiff was a guest and business invitee of Defendant, 

DOLLAR TREE's, business premises for the purpose of shoppingin Defendant's store. 

7. On or about July 5, 2018, Plaintiff was walking through Defendant, DOLLAR 

TREE's, business premises when she slipped and violently fell to the ground due to a clear 

transitory foreib substance existing on Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's, flooring. 

8. While she was still laying on the ground in pain after she slipped, fell, and sustained 

serious permanent bodily injuries, Plaintiff noticed that the clear transitory.foreign substance 

existing on Defendant's flooring which caused her to slip and fall was coming from the overhead 

air conditioning unit. 

9. On or about July 5, 2018, Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's, employee(s), agent(s), 

and/or servant(s) spoke to Plaintiff within a few minutes. after the subject incident occurred and 

admitted to Plaintiff that Defendant, DOLLAR TREE, possessed actual knowledge that the 

overhead air conditioning unit located above the area where the subject incident occurred had been 

leaking for some time prior to July 5, 2018. 

10. At all times material to this action, Defendant, DOLLAR TREE, negligently 

maintained the portion of its premises at issue by allowing a transitory foreign substance to exist 

on the floor, which created an unreasonably dangerous, hazardous, and unsafe condition. 

11. At all times material to this action, Defendant, DOLLAR TREE, owed Plaintiff a 

duty to exercise reasonable care to inaintain its premises in a reasonably safe condition for its 

guests and business invitees, including Plaintiff: 

12. At all times material to this action, it was Defendant, DOLLA& TREE's, duty to 

determine if its premises were reasonably safe for its guests and business invitees and to use 

reasonable care to learn of any dangerous conditions existing on its premises. 

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Case 2:20-cv-14199-KAM Document 1-2 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/23/2020 Page 4 of 7
13. At all times material to this action, it was Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's; duty not 

to create a dangerous condition or allow a dangerous condition to exist on its premises; or, if such 

a condition did exist, it was Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's, duty to remedy the dangerous 

condition. 

14. At all times material to this action, it was Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's, duty to 

use ordinary care to design, build, keep, and maintain its premises in a condition which was 

reasonably safe for its intended use, and free from all defects and conditions which would render 

such premises unreasonably dangerous and/or unsafe for guests and business invitees on the 

premises, or present an unreasonable risk of harm to guests and business invitees on the premises. 

15. At all times material to this action, it was Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's, duty to 

warn its 'invitees of any conditions rendering its premises unreasonably dangerous and unsafe for 

its guests and business invitees on the premises which Defendant, DOLLAR TREE, knew existed, 

or, in the exercise of reasonable care and diligence, should have known existed. 

16. At all times material to this action, Defendant, DOLLAR TREE, maintained the 

specific premises/area and created the unreasonably dangerous and hazardous condition(s) existing 

on the premises located at 5890 20thStreet, Vero Beach, Indian River County, Florida. 

17. At all times material to this action, Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's; premises were 

unreasonably dangerous, hazardous, and unsafe for its guests and business invitees, including 

Plaintiff. 

18. At all times material to this action, the aforementioned unreasonably dangerous, 

hazardous, and unsafe condition was actually known to Defendant, DOLLAR TREE; had existed 

for a sufficient length of time that in the exercise of reasonable and ordinary care, Defendant, 

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Case 2:20-cv-14199-KAM Document 1-2 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/23/2020 Page 5 of 7
DOLLAR TREE, should have known of the condition; and/or occurred with such regularity that 

it was therefore reasonably foreseeable to Defendant, DOLLAR TREE. 

19. Despite actual and/or constructive knowledge of the aforementioned unreasonably 

dangerous, hazardous, a.nd unsafe condition, Defendant, DOLLAR TREE, breached the 

aforementioned duty(ies) it owed to Plaintiff by: 

a. negligently failing to conform to a certain standard of conduct for the protection of 

its business invitees; 

b. negligently failing to take reasonable steps and/or precautions to prevent the subject 

incident, and other substantially similar incidents, from occurring; 

C. negligently failing to maintain its business premises in a reasonably safe condition; 

d. negligently failins to implement reasonable inspection procedures of its business 

premises; 

e. negligently failing to inspect its business premises; 

f. negligently allowing an unreasonably dangerous condition to exist on its business 

premises; 

g. negligently failing to timely repair the unreasonably dangerous condition that 

existed on its business premises; and ~ 

h. negligently failing to warn or otherwise protect Plaintiff of the unreasonably 

danaerous condition existing on its business premises. 

20. Due to the aforementioned negligence of Defendant, DOLLAR TREE, Plaintiff fell 

on July 5, 2018 and sustained serious and perrrianent bodily injuries. 

21. Plaintiffs fall, and resulting injuries, was a direct and proximate result of 

Defendant, DOLLAR TREE's, d'isregard of the duty(ies) that it owed to Plaintiff. 

22. At all times material to this action, Plaintiff exercised reasonable and due care for 

her own safety. 

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Case 2:20-cv-14199-KAM Document 1-2 Entered on FLSD Docket 06/23/2020 Page 6 of 7
23. As a direct and proximate: result of Defendant, DOLLAR. TREE's, aforementioned 

negligence, Plaintiff suffered bodily injury and resulting pain and sufPering, disability, mental 

anguish, disfigurement, loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life, medical care and treatment, loss 

of earnings, and loss of ability to earn money in the past.and in the future. These losses are. either 

permanent or continuing, and Plaintiff will suffer the losses in .the future. Additionally, Plaintiff 

has suffered mental and emotional distress, and will continue to suffer mental. and emotional 

distress in the future. 

VtWHEREFORE, Plaintiff, SANDRA ORTIZ ESPINOZA, demands judgment against 

Defendant, DOLLAR TREE STORES, IINC., for damages, costs of this action, trial. by jury and 

such other and further relief as this Court may deem meet and just. 

DATED this 4t' day of June, 2020. 

GRAVES THOMAS ROTUNDA INJURY 

LAW GROUP" 

3885 20th Street 

Vero Beach, FL 32960 

Tel: (772) 569-8155 

Fax: (772) 569-8270 

Primary E-mail: pleadingsCe~gravesthomas.com 

/s/ Christo her M. Rotunda 

Christopher M. Rotunda 

Florida Bat No. 92012 

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