Scott v. Sears, Roebuck & Co.
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
789 F.2d 1052 (1986)
- Written by Kyli Cotten, JD
Facts
Margaret Scott (plaintiff) fell on a sidewalk with deteriorating concrete at a Sears (defendant) store and broke her leg as a result. In premises-liability cases, an owner is not liable to an invitee if the defect on the premises was open and obvious. In an attempt to prove that the defect was not open and obvious, Scott offered the testimony of Dr. Snydor, an expert in human factors. Snydor testified that (1) the higher section of the curb hid the displaced section where Scott fell, (2) the yellow paint on the curb prompts the human eye to fill in discontinuities, and (3) the break in the concrete was an effective distraction. The jury returned a verdict in favor of Scott. In Sears’s motion for a new trial, it argued that Dr. Snydor’s human-factors testimony was not expert testimony because everything testified to was within the common knowledge of jurors.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Haynsworth, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 806,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
