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Newsletter -
Winter 2006
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Sports team owners and operators of sports venues beware. Premises liability law has changed in New Jersey. On September 13, 2005, the New Jersey Supreme Court issued a decision in Maisonave v. The Newark Bears Professional Baseball Club, Inc., and applied traditional negligence principles to all areas of stadiums excluding the stands and the stairs that fans use to access their seats. In Maisonave, Plaintiff Louis Maisonave attended a minor
league baseball Newark Bears’ game and was injured when a foul ball struck him in the eye while standing on line for a beverage from a mobile vending cart. Plaintiff was standing in the mezzanine area, which is a partially open concourse where vendors sell food. The rest of the area is protected by a net to shield foul balls. The struck baseball caused injuries to Plaintiff’s right eye including numerous fractures, persistent numbness, drooping of the eye, sinus problems and scarring. Plaintiff testified at his deposition that at the time of the incident he was not aware of the ball coming towards him. Also, in a written statement, he mentioned that he was aware that the game was being played, but could not see the field. Plaintiff initiated a lawsuit against The Newark Bears Professional Baseball Club, Inc., and Gourmet Dining Services, the concessionaire of the ballpark. After a motion hearing, the trial court dismissed Plaintiff’s case. The New Jersey Appellate Division overturned the trial court decision. The New Jersey Supreme Court then affirmed and partially modified the Appellate Division’s ruling. The Court held that the “limited duty rule” applies to injuries that occur in the stands and requires owners and operators to provide protective seating to those who seek it as well as screening in dangerous areas. The Court further ruled that in all other areas of the stadium, including the concourses and mezzanine areas, traditional negligence principles apply. The Court’s decision was stimulated in part by the everchanging nature of modern professional sports. Today’s athletes are stronger and technology has made play faster. As a result, today’s baseball players are hitting baseballs harder and farther. At the same time, the limited duty rule is an old rule that has not adapted to modern sports. Additionally, the Court stated that fans reasonably let down their guard when they are in other areas of the stadium, such as waiting on line in a concourse for food and beverages. During such times, owners and operators cannot reasonably expect fans to be completely alert to all activities and occurrences on the field. This Court remembered all too well the incident during a National Hockey League game in Columbus, Ohio, where a young thirteen-year-old girl was killed by an errant hockey puck. For these compelling reasons, sports owners are no longer completely shielded from negligence principles.
– H. Benjamin Sharlin, Esq
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