Gelbman v. Second National Bank

The issue before us is whether we should impose an affirmative duty on a property owner to protect third parties from the negligent acts of business invitees which occur outside the owner’s property and are beyond the owner’s control. We decline to impose such a duty.

In Ohio it is well-established that liability in negligence will not lie in the absence of a special duty owed by the defendant. Strother v. Hutchinson (1981), 67 Ohio St. 2d 282, 285 [21 O.O.3d 177]; Feldman v. Howard (1967), 10 Ohio St. 2d 189, 193 [39 O.O.2d 228]; Kauffman v. First-Central Trust Co. (1949), 151 Ohio St. 298,…