Opinion ID: 2692017
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Exception to the open-and-obvious doctrine

Text: {¶ 12} Mrs. Lang has not appealed the court of appeals’ determination that the step was open and obvious. She argues instead that the open-and-obvious doctrine does not eliminate the landowner’s duty of care, and thus summary judgment is inapplicable, when the dangerous condition at issue violates the Building Code. In short, she is asking for an exception to the open-and-obvious doctrine when the condition that allegedly caused an injury violates the Building Code. {¶ 13} We recently addressed whether such an exception should exist for cases in which a landowner’s failure to comply with a statutory duty creates an open and obvious danger. Robinson, 112 Ohio St.3d 17, 2006-Ohio-6362, 857 N.E.2d 1195. In Robinson, the plaintiff was injured when she fell in the driveway of a residence that she rented from the defendant. Id. ¶ 2. The trial court determined that the driveway, which was under repair at the time, was an open and obvious danger and accordingly entered a directed verdict for the defendant. Id. ¶ 3. {¶ 14} Upon appeal from the court of appeals, we held that although the open-and-obvious doctrine can excuse a defendant’s breach of a common-law duty of care, it does not override statutory duties. Id. ¶ 25. The distinction between the two types of duties lies in the fact that the violation of a statutory duty constitutes negligence per se. Id. ¶ 23–25. See also Chambers, 82 Ohio St.3d at 565, 697 N.E.2d 198, citing Eisenhuth v. Moneyhon (1954), 161 Ohio St. 367, 53 O.O. 274, 119 N.E.2d 440. (“Where a legislative enactment imposes a specific duty for the safety of others, failure to perform that duty is negligence per se”). 5 SUPREME COURT OF OHIO {¶ 15} The concept of negligence per se allows the plaintiff to prove the first two prongs of the negligence test, duty and breach of duty, by merely showing that the defendant committed or omitted a specific act prohibited or required by statute; no other facts are relevant. Chambers at 565–566, 697 N.E.2d 198, citing Swoboda v. Brown (1935), 129 Ohio St. 512, 522, 2 O.O. 516, 196 N.E. 274. We have recognized that when the General Assembly has enacted statutes the violations of which constitute negligence per se, the open-and-obvious doctrine will not protect a defendant from liability. Robinson, 112 Ohio St.3d 17, 2006-Ohio-6362, 857 N.E.2d 1195, ¶ 25; Chambers, 82 Ohio St.3d at 567–568, 697 N.E.2d 198. C. Administrative-rule violations and the open-and-obvious doctrine {¶ 16} In requesting an exception from the application of the open-andobvious doctrine for Building Code violations, Mrs. Lang is essentially asking us to elevate administrative-rule violations to the level of negligence per se that we applied to statutory violations in Robinson. {¶ 17} However, we rejected this argument in Chambers, in which the plaintiff slipped and fell on icy steps and alleged that the defendant had committed several Building Code violations that created the dangerous condition. Chambers, 82 Ohio St.3d at 564, 697 N.E.2d 198. He urged us to hold that a violation of the Building Code constitutes negligence per se. Id. {¶ 18} In resolving the issue, we distinguished between duties arising from statutes, which reflect public policy, and duties arising from administrative rules, which are created by administrative agency employees who act to implement the General Assembly’s public-policy decisions. Chambers, 82 Ohio St.3d at 564, 566-567, 697 N.E.2d 198. “If we were to rule that a violation of the [Building Code] (an administrative rule) was negligence per se, we would in effect bestow upon administrative agencies the ability to propose and adopt rules which alter the proof requirements between litigants. Altering proof requirements 6 January Term, 2009 is a public policy determination more properly determined by the General Assembly   .” Id. at 568. {¶ 19} We also noted that there are innumerable administrative rules adopted each year and that it would be virtually impossible to comply with all of them. Id. Applying negligence per se in this context would thus in effect turn those subject to administrative rules into insurers of third-party safety, something that violates the basic principle of the open-and-obvious doctrine. Id. “Only those relatively few statutes which this court or the General Assembly has determined, or may determine, should merit application of negligence per se should receive such status.” (Emphasis sic.) Id. {¶ 20} For those reasons, we declined to extend negligence per se to administrative-rule violations, holding instead that such violations could be admissible as evidence of negligence, but nothing further. Id. {¶ 21} Our holding there resolves the present issue. Because administrative-rule violations do not create a per se finding of duty and breach of duty, the plaintiff must present evidence to establish those two prongs of the negligence test. While a violation of the Building Code may serve as strong evidence that the condition at issue was dangerous and that the landowner breached the attendant duty of care by not rectifying the problem, the violation is mere evidence of negligence and does not raise an irrebuttable presumption of it. As is the case with all other methods of proving negligence, the defendant may challenge the plaintiff’s case with applicable defenses, such as the open-andobvious doctrine. The plaintiff can avoid such defenses only with a per se finding of negligence, which we declined to extend to this context in Chambers. {¶ 22} Mrs. Lang argues that applying the open-and-obvious doctrine in this manner negates the importance of the regulations and eliminates the penalties for noncompliance. We disagree. Her argument assumes that there will be no circumstances in which a dangerous condition created by a Building Code 7 SUPREME COURT OF OHIO violation is not open and obvious. This decision applies only to those cases in which an alleged Building Code violation creates an alleged danger that is allegedly open and obvious to the plaintiff. There is little difference in this regard between an open and obvious condition that arises from an administrative-rule violation and one that arises from other circumstances; in either case, the plaintiff is responsible for his or her own decision to proceed through a known danger. {¶ 23} Moreover, this decision will not provide a disincentive for landowners to comply with the Building Code. In addition to the possibility that a condition arising from a violation will not be open and obvious, there are numerous statutory penalties that may be levied against landowners who commit violations. See R.C. 3781.15 (providing for injunctions for violations of the Building Code) and 3781.99(B) and (C) (providing for fines and criminal penalties for such violations). The potential for civil liability and the threat of statutory penalties for noncompliance are powerful disincentives to landowners who contemplate violating the Building Code. {¶ 24} Therefore, we hold that the open-and-obvious doctrine may be asserted as a defense to a claim of liability arising from a violation of the Ohio Basic Building Code.