Is it time to proclaim a new rule of consistent snow and ice immunity for all public entities?

The plaintiff slipped and fell on ice at one of the defendant’s train stations. The defendant moved for summary judgment, arguing that, as a public entity, it was immune from liability for injuries a party sustains as a result of its negligent failure to remove snow and ice from the premises. The defendant correctly argued that common law applied, as public entity immunity relating to ice and snow removal had not been abrogated by the Tort Claims Act, N.J.S.A. 59:1-1 et seq. On the other hand, the plaintiff argued that the case of Bligen v. Jersey City Housing Auth, 131 N.J. 124 (1993) should prevent the defendant’s dismissal. In Bligen, the New Jersey Supreme Court held that common law immunity for snow removal activities does not apply to public housing authorities because such authorities are deemed to owe the same standard of care to tenants as other commercial landlords. The Supreme Court in Mann found the plaintiff’s arguments to be unpersuasive as the defendant was clearly not a public housing authority. The court also noted that the defendant maintained many facilities, and, as such, there was no basis to conclude that the defendant owned and controlled a “finite” area. Accordingly, the court affirmed the dismissal to the defendant. In the concurring opinion of Justice Sabatino, he asked that the Supreme Court reconsider the immunity and liability boundaries it established in Bligen. Justice Sabatino stated that the time is ripe to proclaim a new rule of consistent snow and ice immunity for all public entities and hinted that sidewalk ice or snow hazards should be treated as any other dangerous condition under the Tort Claims Act. We will keep an eye on whether the Supreme Court grants certification based upon this call to advance the law on this crucial issue pertaining to public entity immunity.

_{Case Law Alerts, 1st Quarter, January 2016}

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