Phila. Jury Awards $15M to Woman Who Slipped on Apartment Building Stairs

The jury determined that the building’s owner and property manager were responsible for the plaintiff’s injuries, despite the defendants’ arguments that they had only taken charge of the building two weeks before the accident.

A Philadelphia jury has awarded $15 million to a woman who broke her ankle slipping on a flight of stairs in her apartment building.

The jury determined Dec. 20 that the building’s owner and property manager were responsible for the plaintiff’s injuries, despite the defendants’ arguments that they had only taken charge of the building two weeks before the accident.

Plaintiff Patricia Thompson, represented by Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky partners Jeffrey Goodman and Samuel Dordick, claimed she fell because the stairway had no railing, violating city maintenance codes. She asserted that she broke her ankle in the accident, but the hardware that was implanted to treat the injury became infected to a severe enough extent that she required a below-the-knee leg amputation.

Thompson sued the building’s owner, the building’s property manager, and the company that the building owner used to inspect the property. The latter two defendants settled prior to trial, but all three were listed on the verdict sheet.

At trial, Thompson accused the building owner, Alisha Real Estate, of failing to maintain safe conditions on its property and failing to ensure the building manager, Bay Property Management, was performing its responsibilities.

Alisha contended that its owner recalled observing a handrail on the property at a pre-purchase inspection, and the company argued in its pretrial memo, “To the extent the handrail was removed … it was Bay’s responsibility to immediately address this and conduct an emergency repair to protect the building’s tenants.”

Alisha further claimed that the accident was not caused by a lack of handrail, but rather by several preexisting disabilities the plaintiff had, including severe vision impairment and a lack of feeling in her legs and feet.

Goodman said Alisha had sought the fact that it had only just assumed ownership as a defense. However, the plaintiffs countered that there was a period of time before Alisha took over the building when the company was supposed to conduct due diligence and take stock of the property’s conditions.

“It wasn’t really just 11 days,” Goodman asserted. “They had months to try to get this done.”

The plaintiffs alleged that Alisha had a practice of investing in properties without prioritizing their proper maintenance.

“One of the key issues at trial was about exploring the business model and business practices of Alisha Real Estate beyond just this property,” Goodman said. “One of the ways that was done was by finding, just through good internet research, literally hundreds of podcasts that the owners of Alisha Real Estate had been on,” he said.

According to Goodman, the owners discussed in those podcasts a business model of exploiting the real estate market, which the plaintiffs asserted ignored safety.

After a five-day trial before Judge Carmella Jacquinto of the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, the jury determined Alisha Real Estate was 75% liable and Bay Property Management was 25% liable. The entirety of the $15 million verdict was for noneconomic damages.

Goodman said the plaintiffs opted not to put on a case for medical costs because Thompson already required significant care for her prior health conditions, making it difficult to determine what she needed as a direct result of her fall.

Deasey Mahoney & Valentini shareholder Francis Deasey, who represented Alisha, said he was disappointed with the outcome, particularly in the allocation of negligence. He said the defendant is considering its options but an appeal is likely.

O’Hagan Meyer of counsel Peter Kulp, who represented Bay, did not respond to requests for comment.