On September 18, 2025, Atlanta Partners Carrie Christie and Courtney Norton and Atlanta Associate Chastity Marshall won summary judgment in the State Court of Athens-Clarke
County, Georgia. The plaintiff sought injuries allegedly sustained when she slipped and fell inside the defendant’s restaurant. When she arrived at the restaurant and traversed the lobby on her way to the restroom, she did not notice any slippery, sticky or wet spots on the floor. After exiting the restroom, she passed through the same area of the lobby and was surprised when she fell. Ms. Christie and her defense team used surveillance footage to show that many people had traversed the area without incident, and to show that a restaurant team member had inspected the area eighteen minutes prior to the plaintiff’s fall. At that time, the team member averred that the area was clean and dry. Based on this inspection of the area within a short time prior to the plaintiff’s fall, the court agreed that the plaintiff had failed to establish that the defendant had the requisite actual or constructive knowledge of a hazard and therefore the plaintiff’s claims failed as a matter of law.