Belizaire v. Furr (Lawyers Weekly No. 11-137-15)
NOTICE: All slip opinions and orders are subject to formal revision and are superseded by the advance sheets and bound volumes of the Official Reports. If you find a typographical error or other formal error, please notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Judicial Court, John Adams Courthouse, 1 Pemberton Square, Suite 2500, Boston, MA, 02108-1750; (617) 557-1030; SJCReporter@sjc.state.ma.us 13-P-1908 Appeals Court CARINE BELIZAIRE, administratrix,[1] vs. DEBORAH A. FURR. No. 13-P-1908. Suffolk. October 15, 2014. – September 11, 2015. Present: Kafker, C.J., Trainor, & Milkey, JJ. Negligence, One owning or controlling real estate, Foreseeability of harm, Duty to prevent harm. Landlord and Tenant, Execution of lease, Tenancy at will, Landlord’s liability to third person. Real Property, Lease. Civil action commenced in the Superior Court Department on October 13, 2010. The case was heard by Heidi E. Brieger, J., on a motion for summary judgment. Sheldon S. Ananian for the plaintiff. Richard E. Bennett for the defendant. KAFKER, C.J. Carl Hentz Belizaire (the victim) was shot and killed by an unknown assailant at a party held on September 19, 2009, in an apartment in a two-family building (the property) owned by Deborah A. Furr (the defendant). The plaintiff, Carine Belizaire, as administratrix of the victim’s estate, brought suit against the landlord claiming that she was negligent for failing to keep the property safe during the party. The defendant moved for summary judgment, and a Superior Court judge granted it. The plaintiff appealed. Because the plaintiff cannot establish essential elements of her negligence claim,[2] we affirm. 1. Background. Summary judgment is granted where there are no genuine issues of material fact, and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Mass.R.Civ.P. 56(c), as amended, 436 Mass. 1404 (2002). “When reviewing a grant of summary judgment we consider the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and responses to requests for admission under Mass.R.Civ.P. 36, 365 Mass. 795 (1974), together with the affidavits.” Federal Natl. Mort. Assn. v. Hendricks, 463 Mass. 635, 637 (2012). Our review of the summary judgment record is de novo. Miller v. Cotter, 448 Mass. 671, 676 (2007). We make all permissible inferences favorable to the nonmoving party, in this case the plaintiff, and resolve all disputes or conflicts in the summary judgment materials in her favor. Carey v. New England Organ Bank, 446 Mass. 270, 273 (2006). We recount the facts with these requirements in mind. A. Ownership of the property. On October 7, 1997, the defendant purchased the two-family property at 5-7 Edson Street in Dorchester. The defendant lived at 5 Edson Street from 1997 until 2007, when she moved to Brockton. While she lived […]