Brosnan v. Heinen's, Inc. , 99 N.E.3d 1081 ( 2017 )


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  • [Cite as Brosnan v. Heinen's, Inc., 2017-Ohio-8402.]
    Court of Appeals of Ohio
    EIGHTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
    COUNTY OF CUYAHOGA
    JOURNAL ENTRY AND OPINION
    No. 105207
    ROBERT BROSNAN, ET AL.
    PLAINTIFFS-APPELLANTS
    vs.
    HEINEN’S, INC., ET AL.
    DEFENDANTS-APPELLEES
    JUDGMENT:
    AFFIRMED
    Civil Appeal from the
    Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas
    Case No. CV-15-848888
    BEFORE: Laster Mays, J., Keough, A.J., and McCormack, J.
    RELEASED AND JOURNALIZED: November 2, 2017
    ii
    ATTORNEY FOR APPELLANTS
    Stephen G. Thomas
    Stephen G. Thomas Co. L.P.A.
    100 North Main Street, Suite 235
    Chagrin Falls, Ohio 44022
    ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEES
    Patrick M. Roche
    Collins, Roche, Utley & Garner, L.L.C.
    800 Westpoint Parkway, Suite 1100
    Cleveland, Ohio 44145
    iii
    ANITA LASTER MAYS, J.:
    {¶1} Plaintiff-appellant, Robert Brosnan (“Brosnan”), appeals the trial court’s
    grant of summary judgment in favor of defendant-appellee, Heinen’s, Inc. (“Heinen’s”),
    on Brosnan’s claims for negligence and nuisance.            Brosnan’s wife, Mary Brosnan,
    appeals the derivative loss of consortium claim. We affirm.
    I.     Background and Facts
    {¶2} On August 6, 2013, at approximately 10:15 a.m., 71-year-old Brosnan was
    walking toward the entrance of the Heinen’s grocery store located in Bainbridge
    Township, Ohio (“store”) when he tripped and fell over a raised portion of concrete
    located in the parking lot near the entrance. At the time of the incident, Brosnan suffered
    from a detached retina in his right eye, causing limited peripheral vision. After the
    incident, Brosnan suffered from complete blindness in the right eye.
    {¶3} Heinen’s refers to the raised area as a curb while Brosnan refers to the area
    as a tail. For purposes of this case, it is identified as the “edge.” Heinen’s position is that:
    (1) the edge is a curb and no defect exists; (2) Brosnan was familiar with the lot and
    visited weekly; (3) the lighting was sufficient; (4) the traffic was typical; and (5) the edge
    was open and obvious. Brosnan admitted that he was aware of the existence of the edge
    because there were similar areas in the parking lot, but he was not paying attention to
    where he was walking because he was watching for traffic.
    iv
    {¶4} Brosnan further describes the edge as a “concrete tail” measuring “slightly
    more than two inches in height,” located near the store entrance at Ohio State Highway
    Route 306. The edge once served as an “architectural landscaping feature.” Brosnan
    denies that the edge was open and obvious due to the: (1) lack of yellow cautionary
    paint; (2) shadows caused by the angle of sunlight and the building; (3) presence of a
    speed bump and/or planter impeding visibility of the edge; and (4) distraction caused by
    vehicles entering and exiting from Route 306 across the access area to the store from the
    parking lot. Brosnan contends that these circumstances posed a reasonably foreseeable
    risk of harm to pedestrians navigating the driveway because the edge was not discernible,
    served no purpose, and created a tripping hazard for patrons focused on avoiding
    oncoming traffic near the entrance of the store.
    {¶5}   Brosnan filed suit on July 28, 2015, against Heinen’s and        John Doe
    placeholders who were dismissed after discovery.         Heinen’s moved for summary
    judgment on August 1, 2016, that was stayed pending the filing of an answer and the
    completion of discovery.      Brosnan opposed the motion for summary judgment on
    September 13, 2016, discovery was completed with leave of court, and the trial court
    granted summary judgment on November 16, 2016.
    {¶6} The trial court determined:
    [I]n construing the evidence in a light most favorable to plaintiffs, [the
    court] finds that reasonable minds can come to only one conclusion, that the
    curb in Heinen’s parking [lot] on which plaintiff tripped and fell was open
    and obvious and that there is no evidence of a defective or unsafe condition
    v
    in the parking lot that caused plaintiff’s fall. Plaintiff’s argument that the
    fact that he was looking out for traffic in the parking lot at the time of his
    fall constitutes an attendant circumstance fails because he testified that the
    traffic in the parking lot at the time was not out of the ordinary. See
    plaintiff’s deposition transcript pages, 54-55, 70-71, and Bounds v. Marc
    Glassman, Inc., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 90610, 2008-Ohio-5989, ¶ 25. He
    has not established that the traffic in the parking lot at that time was “any
    different than a shopper would normally encounter in that parking lot.” 
    Id. Accordingly, there
    are no genuine issues of material fact that remain to be
    litigated and defendant Heinen’s is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
    {¶7}    The instant appeal followed.
    II.    Law and Analysis
    {¶8}    Brosnan poses two assigned errors:
    I.      The trial court erred in granting summary judgment to the defendant.
    II.     The trial court erred in holding that the open and obvious defense
    remains viable.
    {¶9} We address the combined errors for purposes of judicial economy. The trial
    court’s findings are affirmed.
    A.      Standard of Review
    {¶10}    We review a trial court’s entry of summary judgment de novo, using the
    same standard as the trial court. Grafton v. Ohio Edison Co., 
    77 Ohio St. 3d 102
    , 105,
    
    671 N.E.2d 241
    (1996). Summary judgment may only be granted when the following is
    established: (1) there is no genuine issue as to any material fact; (2) the moving party is
    entitled to judgment as a matter of law; and (3) that reasonable minds can come to but one
    conclusion, and the conclusion is adverse to the party against whom the motion for
    vi
    summary judgment is made, who is entitled to have the evidence construed most strongly
    in its favor. Harless v. Willis Day Warehousing Co., 
    54 Ohio St. 2d 64
    , 67, 
    375 N.E.2d 46
    (1978); Civ.R. 56(E).
    {¶11}     The party moving for summary judgment bears the initial burden of
    apprising the trial court of the basis of its motion and identifying those portions of the
    record that demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of fact on an essential element of
    the nonmoving party’s claim. Dresher v. Burt, 
    75 Ohio St. 3d 280
    , 293, 
    662 N.E.2d 264
    (1996). “Once the moving party meets its burden, the burden shifts to the nonmoving
    party to set forth specific facts demonstrating a genuine issue of material fact exists.”
    Willow Grove, Ltd. v. Olmsted Twp., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 101996, 2015-Ohio-2702,
    
    38 N.E.3d 1133
    , ¶ 14-15, citing Dresher. “To satisfy this burden, the nonmoving party
    must submit evidentiary materials showing a genuine dispute over material facts.”
    Willow Grove at ¶ 15, citing PNC Bank v. Bhandari, 6th Dist. Lucas No. L-12-1335,
    2013-Ohio-2477.
    B.      Discussion
    {¶12} Brosnan is required to establish that genuine issues of material fact exist
    regarding whether: (1) Heinen’s owed Brosnan a duty of care; (2) Heinen’s breached the
    duty; and (3) whether Heinen’s breach was the proximate cause of Brosnan’s injury.
    Bounds v. Marc Glassman, Inc., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 90610, 2008-Ohio-5989, ¶ 10,
    vii
    citing Texler v. D.O. Summers Cleaners & Shirt Laundry Co., 
    81 Ohio St. 3d 677
    , 680,
    
    693 N.E.2d 271
    (1998).
    {¶13} “Whether a duty exists is a question of law for the court to determine.”
    Bounds at ¶ 10, citing Mussivand v. David, 
    45 Ohio St. 3d 314
    , 318, 
    544 N.E.2d 265
    (1989). There can be no legal liability in the absence of establishing the existence of a
    duty. Bounds at ¶ 10, citing Jeffers v. Olexo, 
    43 Ohio St. 3d 140
    , 142, 
    539 N.E.2d 614
    (1989). The “analysis ends and no further inquiry is necessary.” Bounds at ¶ 10, citing
    Gedeon v. E. Ohio Gas Co., 
    128 Ohio St. 335
    , 338, 
    190 N.E. 924
    (1934).
    {¶14}      A landowner’s duty to those entering their land varies depending on
    whether the individual is a trespasser, licensee, or business invitee. There is no duty
    owed to a licensee or trespasser “except to refrain from willful, wanton, or reckless
    conduct that is likely to” cause injury. Skowronski v. Waterford Crossing Homeowners’
    Assn., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 96144, 2011-Ohio-3693, ¶ 11, citing Bae v. Dragoo &
    Assocs., Inc., 
    156 Ohio App. 3d 103
    , 2004-Ohio-544, 
    804 N.E.2d 1007
    (10th Dist.).
    {¶15} Heinen’s responsibility to Brosnan as a business invitee “is to exercise
    ordinary care and to protect the invitee by maintaining the premises in a safe condition.”
    Skowronski at ¶ 11, citing Light v. Ohio Univ., 
    28 Ohio St. 3d 66
    , 68, 
    502 N.E.2d 611
    (1986).     There is also a duty to provide   safe ingress and egress to and from the
    premises.      Witt v. Saybrook Invest. Corp., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 90011,
    viii
    2008-Ohio-2188, ¶ 12, citing Tyrrell v. Invest. Assoc., Inc., 
    16 Ohio App. 3d 47
    , 
    474 N.E.2d 621
    (8th Dist.1984).
    {¶16}        A business owner has no duty to warn of open and obvious dangers,
    acting as a complete bar to a claim of negligence. Skowronski at ¶ 19, citing Armstrong
    v. Best Buy Co., 
    99 Ohio St. 3d 79
    , 2003-Ohio-2573, 
    788 N.E.2d 1088
    .
    Where reasonable minds could differ with respect to whether a danger is
    open and obvious, the obviousness of the risk is an issue for the jury to
    determine. Klauss v. Marc Glassman, Inc., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 84799,
    2005-Ohio-1306. A pedestrian using a public sidewalk is under a duty to
    use care reasonably proportioned to the danger likely to be encountered but
    is not as a matter of law required to look constantly downward. Swiger v.
    Kohl’s Dept. Store, Inc., 
    191 Ohio App. 3d 629
    , 2010-Ohio-6230, 
    947 N.E.2d 232
    (2d Dist.). “Attendant circumstances” may also divert the
    individual’s attention from a hazard and excuse the failure to observe it.
    See Hissong v. Miller, 
    186 Ohio App. 3d 345
    , 2010-Ohio-961, 
    927 N.E.2d 1161
    (2d Dist.). Moreover, as explained in Hissong, “The existence and
    the obviousness of a danger which allegedly exists on a premises is
    determined by a fact-specific inquiry and must be analyzed on a
    case-by-case basis.” (Citation omitted.)
    Skowronski at ¶ 22.
    1.       The Two-Inch Rule
    {¶17} Brosnan offers that it is almost impossible to present a “bright line” rule
    due to the “near-infinite potential variability of fact patterns” involved in premises
    liability claims.     Therefore, Brosnan argues that the two-inch rule, providing that
    differences in elevation that are less than two inches are generally deemed negligible, has
    been presented merely to provide guidance in assessing liability in this case.         See
    generally Kimball v. Cincinnati, 
    160 Ohio St. 370
    , 
    116 N.E.2d 708
    (1953). The rule
    ix
    conversely indicates that an elevation of greater than two inches is indicative of
    negligence, which is Brosnan’s position.
    {¶18}      Heinen’s argues that Brosnan’s failure to advance the two-inch rule in the
    trial court waived presentation on appeal. Our review of Brosnan’s motion in opposition
    to summary judgment does not support Heinen’s position. Brosnan’s brief supporting his
    opposition discusses the history of the two-inch rule as described in Cash v. Cincinnati,
    
    66 Ohio St. 2d 319
    , 
    421 N.E.2d 1275
    (1981), that explains the court’s prior holdings in
    
    Kimball, supra
    , and its progeny, employing the two-inch rule in negligence actions
    involving municipal sidewalk defects. 
    Id. at 321.
    {¶19} The inquiry in Cash was whether the two-inch rule constituted negligence
    per se, but the court determined that resolution of that question was not required in the
    pending case due to distinguishing circumstances:
    We need not disturb the basic rule in order to reverse the Court of Appeals
    here in that we determine that this case may be reasonably differentiated
    from Kimball and its progeny which dealt only with a difference in the
    elevation of slabs of a sidewalk, and conclude that jury questions are
    reasonably raised here, and that all the attendant circumstances should be
    considered in determining liability for defects in the public walkway
    occasioning the injuries.
    
    Id. at 323-324.
    {¶20} The Cash court listed a number of contemporaneous factors that could
    divert one’s attention from a defect: (1) traffic signals; (2) traffic flow and pedestrian
    congestion at a “busy downtown intersection of one of the state’s largest cities”; and (3)
    x
    that the incident occurred at 11:30 a.m. at the beginning of the lunch period. 
    Id. at 324.
    The court also noted that the less than two-inch depression was 12 to 14 inches wide, and
    crossed three feet of the sidewalk area. Certain “conditions would tend to increase the
    danger of such a defect.” 
    Id. at 324.
    {¶21} Finally, the court refused to adopt a negligence per se dimensional theory
    and determined that, in both public and private walkway cases, a “rigid dimensional
    factor should not be paramount in deciding that a jury issue exists.” 
    Id. at 332.
    Instead,
    courts were advised to focus on all of the “attendant circumstances.” 
    Id., citing Smith
    v.
    United Properties, 
    2 Ohio St. 2d 310
    , 
    209 N.E.2d 142
    (1965).
    {¶22} Brosnan delves further into the rule’s history in its appellate brief, citing a
    case predating Cash in Griffin v. Cincinnati, 
    162 Ohio St. 232
    , 
    123 N.E.2d 11
    (1954),
    another municipal sidewalk issue with a defect of less than one inch. Griffin agrees that
    all “attendant circumstances should be taken into consideration,” and that the question of
    “whether a sidewalk is reasonably safe or dangerous for travel does not depend alone
    upon the matter of elevation or depression.” 
    Id. at 236.
    {¶23} Griffin observed that an alleged defect or irregularity may be actionable
    negligence under some circumstances, requiring presentation to a jury, while under
    different circumstances, the defect may be legally insignificant. 
    Id., citing Sears
    v.
    Greenfield, 
    287 Mass. 445
    , 
    192 N.E. 1
    (1934). An individual is also responsible to be
    reasonably observant:
    xi
    A pedestrian is required to use his senses to avoid injury while walking on a
    sidewalk, but this does not mean that he is required as a matter of law to
    keep his eyes upon the sidewalk at all times. It may be necessary to keep a
    lookout for traffic and other pedestrians to avoid collision. Where a defect
    is clearly discernible from a reasonable distance, the failure to see and
    avoid it constitutes contributory negligence.
    “One using a sidewalk, crosswalk, street or highway, which ordinary and
    reasonable care would inform him was dangerous, takes the risk of such
    injuries as may result to him by open and apparent defects, such as his
    observation ought to have detected and avoided.”
    (Emphasis added.) 
    Id. at 238,
    quoting Highway Constr. Co. v. Sorna, 
    122 Ohio St. 258
    ,
    
    171 N.E. 312
    (1930), paragraph one of the syllabus.
    {¶24}        In Gates v. Speedway Superamerica, L.L.C., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga
    No. 90563, 2008-Ohio-5131, this court addressed the two-inch rule and embraced
    consideration of attendant circumstances,
    [B]usiness owners have no duty to repair a defect measuring two inches or
    less in height differential unless attendant circumstances exist making it
    reasonably foreseeable that the defect will cause an injury. Henry [v.
    Marriott Hotel Servs., Inc., 2d Dist. Montgomery                 No. 19653,
    2003-Ohio-4840]; see also Jeswald [v. Hutt, 
    15 Ohio St. 2d 224
    , 
    239 N.E.2d 37
    (1968), (“[g]enerally, no liability exists for minor imperfections in the
    surface of such a parking area — those slight irregularities reasonably to be
    anticipated in any traveled surface”). The presence of dim lighting does not
    necessarily change a minimal sidewalk defect into something creating a
    greater than normal risk of injury. Goldshot v. Romano’s Macaroni Grill,
    2d Dist. Montgomery No. 19023, 2002-Ohio-2159.
    (Emphasis added.) 
    Id. at ¶
    23; see also Skowronski, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 96144,
    2011-Ohio-3693, at ¶ 18.
    2.      Open and Obvious Doctrine and Defect
    xii
    {¶25}    Appellants reject the application of the open and obvious doctrine to cases
    involving the two-inch rule, and propose a novel, two-step process for analyzing exterior
    pedestrian trip and fall cases due to the vast range of fact patterns. First, the court would
    determine whether the open and obvious doctrine applies. If the answer is affirmative,
    the question is: how does the injured party’s failure to see the hazard affect the analysis?
    {¶26}    While we find appellants’ proposal to be well-considered, we decline to
    adopt the recommendation. It is precisely because of the numerous factual variations in
    slip-and-fall cases that courts have elected to prioritize examination of the attendant
    circumstances while embracing a two-inch rebuttable presumption rule. See Gates at ¶
    23.   We reiterate that there is no per se dimensional standard for negligence in
    trip-and-fall cases simply because of the range of fact situations. 
    Cash, 66 Ohio St. 2d at 332
    , 
    421 N.E.2d 1275
    .
    {¶27} In Gates, we disagreed with appellants that application of the open and
    obvious doctrine and two-inch rule is incongruous:
    Appellants argue that the defect cannot be both “open and obvious” and
    “trivial.” However, we agree that the open and obvious doctrine and the
    two-inch rule regarding height differentials in pavement can co-exist and
    that “[a]lthough the rule and the doctrine are not the same, they share a key
    characteristic insofar as they both relieve a landowner of a duty to warn of
    certain potential hazards.” Henry v. Marriott Hotel Servs., Inc., 2d Dist.
    Montgomery No. 19653, 2003-Ohio-4840.
    Gates, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 90563, 2008-Ohio-5131, at ¶ 19, fn. 5.
    xiii
    {¶28} “[I]t is incumbent upon the plaintiff to identify or explain the reason for
    the fall.” Stamper v. Middletown Hosp. Assoc., 
    65 Ohio App. 3d 65
    , 
    582 N.E.2d 1040
    (12th Dist.1989). While appellants alternately characterize the edge as an “artifact” and
    a “tail,” Heinen’s argues that the edge is not a defect, it’s a curb. The term “defect” is
    not so narrowly defined. A defect may be present where the object that caused the injury
    failed to “operate as intended due to a perceivable condition or if the instrumentality
    contained a perceivable imperfection that impaired its worth or utility.”        Jacobs v.
    Oakwood, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 103830, 2016-Ohio-5327, ¶ 16, citing Jones v.
    Delaware City School Dist. Bd. of Edn., 2013-Ohio-3907, 
    995 N.E.2d 1252
    , ¶ 22 (5th
    Dist.).
    {¶29} Heinen’s relies on this court’s decision in Alvarado v. Cinemark United
    States, 8th Dist. Cuyahoga No. 81702, 2003-Ohio-881. Alvarado tripped over a parking
    lot curb when leaving the Cinemark theater and sued for negligence in maintaining the
    premises.
    {¶30}   We concluded that Alvarado’s testimony that he did not see the curb in
    the poorly illuminated parking lot did not constitute negligence because the curb was
    open and obvious. “[A]ppellant’s inability to undertake a common and ordinary task
    such as negotiating a curb en route to an adjacent parking lot was the proximate cause of
    his injury or, at the very least, that appellant’s negligence was greater than that of
    Cinemark’s.” 
    Id. at ¶
    12.
    xiv
    {¶31}     We note here that our analysis in Alvarado was based on viewing the
    open and obvious doctrine “not in terms of the duty owed but rather in terms of
    causation.” 
    Id. at ¶
    10. Faced with similar analyses by other jurisdictions, the Ohio
    Supreme Court clarified the doctrinal issues of duty versus causation:
    The courts analyzing the open-and-obvious nature of the hazard as an
    element of comparative negligence focus on whether the plaintiff’s
    negligence in confronting an open-and-obvious danger exceeds any
    negligence attributable to the defendant. See, e.g., Kloes v. Eau Claire
    Cavalier Baseball Assn., Inc., 
    170 Wis. 2d 77
    , 87, 
    487 N.W.2d 77
    (1992).
    Under this approach, the open-and-obvious rule does not act as an absolute
    defense. Rather, it triggers a weighing of the parties’ negligence. 
    Id. What these
    courts fail to recognize is that the open-and-obvious doctrine is
    not concerned with causation but rather stems from the landowner’s duty to
    persons injured on his or her property. By failing to recognize the
    distinction between duty and proximate cause, we believe that these courts
    have prematurely reached the issues of fault and causation. * * *
    Armstrong, 
    99 Ohio St. 3d 79
    , 2003-Ohio-2573, 
    788 N.E.2d 1088
    , at ¶ 10-11.
    {¶32}    The Armstrong court confirmed that “the open-and-obvious doctrine
    remains viable in Ohio,” abrogating the landowner’s duty of care. 
    Id. at ¶
    14.
    [W]hen courts apply the rule, they must focus on the fact that the doctrine
    relates to the threshold issue of duty. By focusing on the duty prong of
    negligence, the rule properly considers the nature of the dangerous
    condition itself, as opposed to the nature of the plaintiff’s conduct in
    encountering it. The fact that a plaintiff was unreasonable in choosing to
    encounter the danger is not what relieves the property owner of liability.
    Rather, it is the fact that the condition itself is so obvious that it absolves
    the property owner from taking any further action to protect the plaintiff.
    
    Id. at ¶
    13.
    xv
    {¶33} Brosnan offers that a number of attendant circumstances create a genuine
    issue of material fact as to whether the danger was open and obvious. A number of
    evidentiary photographs were taken after Heinen’s repaved the parking lot shortly after
    the incident.1 Brosnan testified at his deposition that the asphalt was not “fresh” and was
    “grayish” in color, unlike the post-paving photographs, so that the lack of contrast
    between the edge and paving that existed at the time of the incident is not accurately
    depicted. The edge and parking dividers remained after resurfacing, but the added layer
    of asphalt effectively reduced the height of the edge so that it appeared in the photographs
    to be less than two inches high.
    {¶34}    Approaching the store from a southerly direction, Brosnan stepped onto a
    parking area divider that he described as a “bumper strip” that was approximately four
    inches tall and saw a large triangular planter to his left, and a parking divider on his right.
    {¶35} Due to the close proximity of the parking divider to the edge, Brosnan
    observed it only momentarily as he stepped forward, simultaneously checking the lanes
    for oncoming traffic, and tripped on the edge, which Brosnan stated was at least two
    inches in height at the time. The edge paralleled a portion of the perimeter aligning the
    two lanes of traffic providing ingress and egress to the store parking area.
    {¶36} There is no dispute that Brosnan was required to cross the edge to access the
    store. The weather was bright and sunny, and Brosnan alleged the edge blended with the
    1   Heinen’s accepted a proposal to resurface the lot in May 2013, but work
    xvi
    concrete. Brosnan claimed that he did not expect the edge to be there as it served no
    purpose. Brosnan argues that Heinen’s should have painted the edge yellow to make it
    visible, and points to the Heinen’s location in Pepper Pike, which employs yellow painted
    dividers and curbs, to demonstrate Heinen’s knowledge that such areas should be
    differentiated from the asphalt.
    {¶37} The trial court below determined that: (1) the edge was open and obvious,
    (2) there was no evidence that a defective or unsafe condition in the parking lot caused
    the fall; and (3) the traffic in the parking lot was not any different than a customer would
    normally encounter. Brosnan contests the trial court’s reliance on Bounds, 8th Dist.
    Cuyahoga No. 90610, 2008-Ohio-5989.
    {¶38} In Bounds, we held that a trip and fall in a parking lot with potholes and
    traffic did not create a situation that would relieve an individual from exercising ordinary
    care under the circumstances. 
    Id. at ¶
    25. However, we also stated that an accurate
    assessment required consideration of “all facts relating to the event, such as time, place,
    surroundings or background, and the conditions normally existing that would
    unreasonably increase the normal risk of a harmful result of the event.” 
    Id., citing Menke
    v. Beerman, 12th Dist. Butler No. CA97-09-182, 1998 Ohio App. LEXIS 868 (Mar. 9,
    1998).
    did not commence until September 2013, after the incident.
    xvii
    {¶39} Conceding that the term “attendant circumstances” is difficult to define,
    we explained in Bounds that,
    [T]hey generally include ‘any distraction that would come to the attention
    of a pedestrian in the same circumstances and reduce the degree of care an
    ordinary person would exercise at the time.’ Klauss [v. Marc Glassman,
    Inc., 8th Dist. Cuyahoga App. No. 84799, 2005-Ohio-1306], citing
    McGuire v. Sears, Roebuck and Co., 
    118 Ohio App. 3d 494
    , 
    693 N.E.2d 807
           (1996).
    
    Id. at ¶
    24.
    III.   Conclusion
    {¶40} Considering the attendant circumstances in this case, and construing the
    evidence in favor of Brosnan, we find that there are no genuine issues of material fact
    requiring jury resolution.    The trial court’s reliance on Bounds is appropriate. The
    evidence does not rebut the trial court’s conclusions that:        the edge was open and
    obvious; there was no evidence that a defective or unsafe condition in the parking lot
    caused the fall; and the traffic in the parking lot was no different than a customer would
    normally encounter. These conclusions are bolstered by Brosnan’s admission that he
    was very familiar with the parking lot conditions, visited the store often, and that he was
    paying attention to the traffic and not the edge.
    {¶41} We find that the assigned errors in this case lack merit.
    {¶42}    The trial court’s judgment is affirmed.
    It is ordered that the appellees recover from appellants costs herein taxed.
    The court finds there were reasonable grounds for this appeal.
    xviii
    It is ordered that a special mandate issue out of this court directing the common
    pleas court to carry this judgment into execution.
    A certified copy of this entry shall constitute the mandate pursuant to Rule 27 of
    the Rules of Appellate Procedure.
    _________________________________________
    ANITA LASTER MAYS, JUDGE
    KATHLEEN ANN KEOUGH, A.J., and
    TIM McCORMACK, J., CONCUR