Court Opinion

ID: 9548475
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 18:04:00.932664+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T15:19:01.567635
License: Public Domain

CONCURRING OPINION OF
BURNS, C.J.
I agree with the majority that it was error to enter summary judgment in favor of the Association and Chaney against the plaintiffs. The Association employed a security guard on Mondays through Fridays from 11:30 p.m. to 7:30 the next morning and on Saturdays and Sundays from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 the next morning. There is evidence that during the early morning hours of Sunday, May 20, 1979, its security guard was negligent. Having undertaken at the apartment owners’ expense to provide the security service, the Association is liable if it performed negligently and its negligence was a substantial factor cause1 of damage to the Moodys.
I disagree with the majority’s interpretation of the King v. Ilikai Properties, Inc. case. In my view, the majority’s opinion reverses this court’s holding in that case. See Wolsk v. State, 68 Haw. 302, 711 P.2d 1300 (1986).
In King, all of the more than 1,000 apartments in the Uikai’s Tower Building were condominium apartments. Many of the apartment owners leased their apartments to Ilikai Properties, Inc. (IPI), who rented them to its customers as hotel rooms. Others, such as Shigeta, leased them to tenants, such as King. Others resided in them.
Thus, the only relevant difference between IPI and King was that IPI leased many apartments to rent to its customers as hotel rooms and King leased only one apartment for her own occupancy. Whatever security services IPI provided was as innkeeper to its hotel guests. IPI did not have any more responsibility for the security of non-hotel guests than did Shigeta or the other owners or lessees of the apartments not leased to *368IPI.
This court held that neither Shigeta nor the Ilikai Association of Owners nor IPI owed any legal duty to King and her guest, Kelley, to protect them in King’s apartment from the foreseeable criminal acts of third parties. If, as the majority holds in this case, a landlord owes such a duty to his tenant and his tenant’s guests, then Shigeta owed such a duty to King and Kelley. If all condominium associations owe such a duty to the owners and lessees of the condominium apartments and their guests, then the Ilikai Association of Owners owed such a duty to Shigeta, King, and Kelley.
I also disagree that all condominium associations have a legal duty to protect their apartment owners and persons reasonably anticipated to be on the premises from the harm caused on the premises by the foreseeable2 criminal acts of third persons.3
The Dukesherers are the owners of Hale Kekoa condominium apartment A506. The Hale Kekoa condominium consists of two buildings. The makai or “A” building has five floors of apartments and 50 apartments. The mauka or “B” building has six floors of apartments and 114 apartments. The Dukesherers are also the owners of a .6% undivided interest in the Hale Kekoa’s common elements which includes its limited common elements which includes one parking space per apartment.
The affairs of the Association are governed by a nine-member Board of Directors (Board). Three are elected each year for three-year terms. When voting for Board members, each apartment owner votes the amount of his, her, or its percentage interest in the Hale Kekoa’s common elements.
According to the Hale Kekoa’s By-Laws, the Board is responsible, inter alia, for the “[operation, care, upkeep and maintenance of the common elements.” Nothing in Hawaii Revised Statutes chapter 514 (Hawaii’s Horizontal Property Regime law) or in the Hale Kekoa condominium documents obligates the Association to provide security devices or services for the benefit of its apartment owners.
In my view, the majority’s decision imposes a legal duty which ought not be imposed except by the parties involved or by the legislature. *369There is scant evidence that condominium apartment owners and persons reasonably anticipated to be on the premises want or need such judicial intervention.4 In my opinion, the imposition of the legal duty imposed by the majority’s decision is not in the public interest.5
The only way condominium associations can realistically protect themselves against the liability of this duty is by installing state of the art security devices and improvements, employing reliable security personnel and services, and buying insurance. In my view, the majority’s decision erroneously imposes these requirements on condominium buyers and owners who do not want or need the bother, the intrusiveness, or the additional expense that such devices, improvements, personnel, services, and insurance will cause them, their lessees, and their guests

See McKenna v. Volkswagenwerk Aktiengesellschaft, 57 Haw. 460, 558 P.2d 1018 (1977).

In this day and age when no one and no place is safe from the criminal acts of third persons, we may expect the foreseeability issue to be decided against the associations.

I express no opinion on the same question with respect to landlords and tenants.

When persons consider buying a condominium apartment, they can easily determine what kind, if any, of security devices, services, and improvements are needed and provided. if they are dissatisfied with the existing situation, they should not make the purchase. If after they purchase they think more or better devices, services, and improvements are necessary, then as voting members of the association they can attempt to convince the association’s other voting members and board to have them provided. The cost of those items will be directly and immediately passed on to them and the other apartment owners in the form of special assessments or regular maintenance fees. They can also install additional security devices in their own apartment at their own expense.

Logically, if all condominium associations have a legal duty to protect their apartment owners and persons reasonably anticipated to be on the premises from the harm caused on the premises by the foreseeable criminal (and noncriminal) acts of third persons, then architects and developers have a correlative duty to design and develop all condominium developments to facilitate associations in the fulfillment of their duty.