Heynen v. Fairbanks
Annotate this CaseA tenant fell on the outside stairs of her rented apartment and sustained a serious back injury. She sued her landlord alleging that her fall was caused by the landlord's negligent failure to inspect and maintain the staircase. Before trial, the tenant filed a series of motions in limine, including one seeking to prevent the admission of evidence not previously disclosed during discovery on the issues of comparative negligence and failure to inspect and maintain, and another seeking to prevent the defendants from misstating the respective duties of landlords and tenants. The superior court denied these motions. At the close of evidence, the tenant moved for a directed verdict on the landlord's comparative negligence defense and the landlord's attempt to allocate fault to a deceased party. She also moved to preclude the landlord from making arguments based on medical records admitted at trial. The superior court denied each motion. The jury returned a verdict finding no negligence. The tenant appealed the denial of her motions in limine and for directed verdict, as well as the superior court's denial of her motion to preclude opposing counsel from arguing from certain medical records. She also argued that the superior court erred in allowing the landlord to attempt to allocate fault to a deceased party. Furthermore, she argued that the jury's finding that the landlord was not negligent was contrary to the evidence. Upon review, the Supreme Court affirmed because the superior court did not err, and the jury's verdict was not contrary to the evidence.
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