Tennessee Supreme Court Allows Both Direct And Indirect Negligence Claims In Slip And Fall Case

Nashville, TN. The Tennessee Supreme Court held that a plaintiff may go forward with claims of direct negligence against a business even after the business admits it is indirectly liable for any negligence of its employee. The Court also held that a plaintiff may assert concurrent claims based on both negligent activity and premises liability.On December 17, 2018, Melissa Binns (“Plaintiff”) allegedly slipped and fell at a grocery store owned and operated by Trader Joe’s East, Inc. (“Defendant”) in Nashville, Tennessee. Plaintiff claimed that an employee of Defendant negligently loaded and stocked tofu in the store, causing a package to fall and release a clear liquid onto the floor.While shopping, Plaintiff walked down the aisle with the spill, slipped on the liquid, and suffered injuries. Plaintiff filed suit, alleging premises liability, negligent training, negligent supervision, and indirect or “vicarious” liability against Defendant. In its answer, Defendant denied liability for the incident but admitted it would be vicariously liable for the conduct of its employee if the fact finder determined the employee was negligent.Defendant then filed a motion for partial judgment on the pleadings, attempting to dismiss Plaintiff’s negligent training and supervision claims. Defendant argued that Plaintiff’s direct negligent claims were...