A child of 2.5 years old, was hurt in a slip-and-fall incident while leaving a residential building. The plaintiff was walking with their father when they slipped on papers that were scattered on the entrance platform outside the front door of the building. As a result, the plaintiff fell down several steps and hit their head on a concrete column.

The mother and natural guardian of the injured individual, filed a lawsuit against the building’s proprietor. The plaintiff asserted that the presence of the papers on the entrance platform constituted a hazardous situation. They also argued that the papers were constantly present on the entrance platform. The plaintiff’s father saw the incident and gave testimony that his child slipped and fell due to the presence of the papers.

The defense stated that they were unaware of the hazardous condition.

The court listened to testimony from the superintendent of the building. The superintendent admitted that papers had been delivered to the building for five to six years. However, he claimed that the papers were dropped off in the vestibule inside the building. He further testified that the papers were then placed on the fireplace mantel located near the tenants’ mailboxes in the building’s lobby.

The plaintiff suffered a head wound that required two sutures. The mother claimed her son has developed post-traumatic seizure disorder.

The plaintiffs’ expert neurologist testified that the seizure disorder was casually related to the slip and fall. He opined that there was no evidence of a family history of seizures and noted that the mother had previously mentioned her son’s seizure began two weeks after the accident.

The defense claimed that the plaintiff suffered from a generalized seizure disorder unrelated to the accident. They contended the first record of seizures was not reported until eight months after the accident.

The defendant called one of the plaintiff’s treating pediatric neurologist, Dr. Karen Balballan-Gil. She testified that the seizures were idiopathic in origin and not related to the accident. The defense’s independent medical examiner concurred with the pediatric neurologist’s findings.

The jury rendered a plaintiff’s verdict. It found the defendant liable for the injuries and awarded $1.5 million.