Claims in Parking Lot Trip and Fall Case Defeated by Open and Obvious Defect Defense

The Appellate Division, Second Department affirmed HRRV’s summary judgment win in a trip and fall accident at Citi Field in a decision which illustrated the elastic boundaries of the “open and obvious” defect defense and why it is useful for property owners.   In Costidis, the plaintiff alleged that he stumbled while walking on a walkway after parking his car: he fell because of the elevation difference between patio pavers and an abutting tree bed located at the stadium. He claimed t