IN THE MATTER OF THE USE BY THE TRIAL COURTS OF THE STANDARD JURY INSTRUCTIONS (CIVIL)
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The Florida Supreme Court approved a revised standard jury instruction for landlord negligence cases, distinguishing between residential and non-residential leased premises and reflecting a heightened duty owed by landlords to residential tenants as established in Mansur v. Eubanks.
The Court granted permission to publish the requested revision of instruction 3.5i with commentary, establishing different standards of landlord negligence depending on whether the leased premises are residential or non-residential.
[1] A landlord may be liable for negligence in failing to disclose a known dangerous condition on leased non-residential premises if the tenant did not know and could not dis…
[2] For leased residential premises, a landlord may be liable for negligently failing to repair a defect discoverable by reasonable inspection before the tenant takes possess…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Revision //82, reflecting a greater duty by landlord to tenant on leased residential premises, was derived from Mansur v. Eubanks, 401 So. 2d 1328 (Fla.1981), overruling to that extent Brooks v. Peters, 157 Fla. 141, 25 So. 2d 205 (1946).”
Establishes the legal foundation for the revised instruction and shows the overruling of prior precedent to impose greater landlord duties in residential tenancy
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions (Civil) requested authorization to publish a complete revision of instruction 3.5i concernin…
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McDonald, justice.
The Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions (Civil) requests that the committee and the Florida Bar be authorized to publish a complete revision of 3.5i, landlord’s negligence (toward tenant), with comments, Florida Standard Jury Instructions (Civil). Permission to publish the requested revision with comment is granted.*
it js so ordered
ALDERMAN, C. J., and ADKINS, BOYD, OVERTON, SUNDBERG and EHRLICH, JJ., concur. *
The requested revision is as follows:
Substitute the following for existing 3.5i: 3.5i
LANDLORD’S NEGLIGENCE (TOWARD TENANT)
i.Landlord’s negligence (toward tenant) : when leased premises are not residential: whether (defendant landlord) negligently failed to disclose to (claimant tenant) a dangerous condition on the leased premises which was known to (defendant), which was not known to (claimant) or discoverable by him by the use of reasonable care, and which (defendant) had reason to believe (claimant) could not discover; and, if so, when leased premises are residential (not common areas): whether [, before allowing (claimant tenant) to take possession of the dwelling, (defendant landlord) negligently failed to repair a defect that was discoverable by a reasonable inspection] [or] [, after (claimant tenant) took possession of the dwelling, (defendant landlord) negligently failed to repair a dangerous or defective condition on the premises of which he had actual notice]; and, if so,
Comment on 3.5i
1. Revision / /82, reflecting a greater duty by landlord to tenant on leased residential premises, was derived from Mansur v. Eubanks, 401 So. 2d 1328 (Fla.1981), overruling to that extent Brooks v. Peters, 157 Fla. 141, 25 So. 2d 205 (1946). See also § 83.51, Fla.Stat. (1981), which may impose on the landlord greater duties, in respect to conditions arising after tenant’s possession, than were addressed in Mansur. If other or greater duties are imposed by the statute, charge 3.5i should be modified to express those duties in the terms of the case. Charge 3.5i pertains to the landlord’s duties, not the tenant’s, but the committee calls attention to statutes in chapter 83 imposing certain duties on the tenant, which may affect the landlord’s duties as expressed in this charge.
2. Common areas. In respect to common areas the landlord’s duty to the tenant is stated in 3.5f. The landlord’s duty to others in common areas is the same as owed by any landowner or possessor of land, e.g., 3.5f, 3.5g.
3. Persons invited on leased residential premises by tenant. The landlord’s duty to persons invited on leased residential premises by the tenant is the same as the landlord’s duty to the tenant. Mansur v. Eubanks, 401 So. 2d 1328 (Fla.1981).
4. Waiver. The committee expresses no opinion about whether a tenant may waive duties owed him by the landlord. Compare Mansur v. Eubanks, 401 So. 2d 1328 (Fla. 1981), with §§ 83.51(1)(b), 83.51(4), and 83.-47, Fla.Stat. (1981).
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Veterans GAS Co. v. Gibbs, 538 So. 2d 1325 (Fla. 1st DCA 1989)…ercial lease granting lessee exclusive use of premises could not recover from landlord for injuries resulting from fall caused by allegedly defective carpeting); In the Matter of the Use by the Trial Courts of the Standard Jury Instructions (Civil), 418 So. 2d 267 (Fla.1982) (adopting Standard In [*1328] struction 3.5(i), relating to the duty of care owed by a landlord of commercial premises to a tenant or those on the premises with the permission of the tenant; and see particularly Comment 1 to the instructi…
Authorities Cited
- Mansur v. Eubanks, 401 So. 2d 1328 (Fla. 1981)
- Brooks v. Peters, 157 Fla. 141 (Fla. 1946)
- Kinkelaar v. Luella S. Kinkelaar, 157 Fla. 141 (Fla. 1946)