BENNETT v. Lowe's Home Centers, LLC
Filing
18
OPINION and ORDER granting 16 Defendant's MOTION for Summary Judgment. Signed by District Judge Bernard A. Friedman. (JCur)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN
SOUTHERN DIVISION
RODNEY BENNETT,
Plaintiff,
Civil Action No. 17-CV-10538
vs.
HON. BERNARD A. FRIEDMAN
LOWE’S HOME CENTERS, LLC,
Defendant.
____________________________/
OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING
DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
This matter is presently before the Court on defendant’s motion for summary
judgment [docket entry 16]. Plaintiff has not responded and the time for him to do so has expired.
Pursuant to E.D. Mich. 7.1(f)(2), the Court shall decide this motion without a hearing.
This is a premises liability action. Plaintiff alleges that he slipped and fell “on a
slippery, transparent liquid substance” while shopping at defendant’s store in Sterling Heights,
Michigan, on December 31, 2015. Compl. ¶ 6. Plaintiff further alleges that as a result of
defendant’s negligence, he sustained severe injuries to his left shoulder. Id. ¶ 14. Plaintiff
commenced suit in state court and defendant timely removed the matter to this Court based on
diversity of citizenship.
Defendant argues that it is entitled to summary judgment because (1) plaintiff has not
shown that defendant had notice of the condition that allegedly caused him to fall; (2) plaintiff
failed to preserve evidence, and deprived defendant of the opportunity to gather its own evidence,
by failing to photograph the scene1 and by failing to report the incident to defendant until long
afterwards; and (3) plaintiff has no evidence that his shoulder injury was caused by the fall.2
By failing to respond to defendant’s summary judgment motion, plaintiff has
conceded that there are no genuine issues of fact as to the critical issues of notice and causation. See
Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(e)(2). Under these circumstances, defendant is plainly entitled to judgment as a
matter of law. Accordingly,
IT IS ORDERED that defendant’s motion for summary judgment is granted.
Dated: December 7, 2017
Detroit, Michigan
s/Bernard A. Friedman
BERNARD A. FRIEDMAN
SENIOR UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
The undersigned certifies that the foregoing document was served upon counsel of record and
any unrepresented parties via the Court's ECF System to their respective email or First Class
U.S. mail addresses disclosed on the Notice of Electronic Filing on December 7, 2017.
s/Johnetta M. Curry-Williams
Case Manager
1
On this point, defendant notes plaintiff’s deposition testimony that he slipped on “some
white dust” and that his coat “was loaded” with it. Pl.’s Dep. at 49-50.
2
On this issue, defendant points to a medical record from Urgent Care of Farmington
Hills, where plaintiff sought treatment on December 29, 2015, for left shoulder pain. Plaintiff
told the provider he had been experiencing this pain for “5 months.” Def.’s Ex. 2.
2
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