Smilowitz v. Russell

DANIEL S. PEARSON, Judge.

The issue in this case is whether, as the court below ruled, the shop rule exception to the dangerous instrumentality doctrine recognized in Castillo v. Bickley, 363 So.2d 792 (Fla.1978), relieves the vehicle owner of liability to an injured party where, as here, the injury-causing operation of the vehicle occurred not during the servicing or service-related testing of the vehicle, but rather as a necessary concomitant to the service to be performed.

The facts are not in dispute. Smilowitz, a pedestrian, was struck by a vehicle owned by Russell. At the time of the…