Love v. Schmidt

There are two issues in this case: (1) whether a plaintiff, who fell to the floor and was injured after sitting on a properly positioned toilet seat she knew was loose, was guilty of contributory negligence as a matter of law, and (2) whether a landlord is liable for an independent contractor’s negligence in failing to perform the landlord’s common-law duty to maintain the common areas of an office building in a reasonably safe condition.

On March 23, 1984, Winfree H. Slater, Inc. (Slater) contracted to manage Edward F. Schmidt, Jr.’s office building at 1214 West-over Hills Boulevard in the…