DANIEL J DOYLE V LAIDLAW WASTE SYSTEMS INC
Annotate this Case
Download PDF
STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS
DANIEL J. DOYLE,
UNPUBLISHED
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v
LAIDLAW WASTE SYSTEMS, INC.,
No. 184762
Ottawa Circuit Court
LC No. 94-020390-NO
Defendant-Appellee.
Before: Reilly, P.J., and Hood and Murphy, JJ.
MURPHY, J. (dissenting).
I respectfully dissent.
I agree that the danger of tripping or falling over such a wall is open and obvious. Accordingly,
a failure to warn theory cannot establish liability. Bertrand v Alan Ford, Inc, 449 Mich 606, 614; 537
NW2d 185 (1995). However, in my opinion, because of the unusual or special aspects of this
particular wall, i.e., its location (in an unloading area at a landfill where invitees deposit, sometimes
heavy, refuse over the wall and into dumpsters up to ten feet below the wall) and the surrounding
conditions (the accumulation of debris and refuse near the base of the wall where invitees stand to
unload their refuse), I think question of fact arises as to whether the risk of harm remained unreasonable
despite its obviousness and required defendant to take additional precautions. Id. at 614, 617. Issues
of plaintiff’s conduct under these circumstances should be addressed by assessing plaintiff’s
comparative negligence.
I would reverse and remand for further proceedings.
/s/ William B. Murphy
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
