PITTSBURGH – The Grand Concourse restaurant in Pittsburgh countered that it is not responsible for injuries and damages suffered by a local man, when one of its servers dropped a tray of food on top of him during dinner on Christmas Eve in 2018.
Mark M. Retter Jr. and Frances J. Retter first filed suit in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on Nov. 30 versus Landry’s Restaurant, Inc. (doing business as “The Grand Concourse Restaurant and Lounge”) and The Grand Concourse. All parties are of Pittsburgh.
“On or about Dec. 24, 2018, the plaintiffs were business invitees in the defendant’s premises located at 100 West Station Square Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15219. Defendants owned, co-owned, managed, co-managed, supervised, co-supervised, operated, co-operated, possessed, co-possessed, controlled, and/or co-controlled the premises located at 100 W. Station Square Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15219,” the suit said.
“At the above mentioned time and place, plaintiff, Mark M. Retter, Jr. was sitting at a table at the restaurant on the premises when, suddenly and without warning, a waitress tripped and dropped a serving tray of food on him thereby sustaining injuries and damages.”
The plaintiffs said the negligence, carelessness, and/or recklessness of the defendants was the proximate cause of the subject incident.
“The injuries and damages set forth below were caused by and were the direct and proximate result of the negligence, carelessness, and/or recklessness of defendants in any or all of the following respects: In causing and/or permitting the dangerous, hazardous, and/or unsafe condition to exist on the subject premises; In failing to keep the premises in a safe condition for persons lawfully thereon,” according to the suit, in part.
“In failing to provide persons lawfully using the premises, specifically plaintiff, with a safe environment; In maintaining the premises in an improper manner or in employing personnel who were not sufficiently qualified to maintain the premises in a proper manner.”
Retter Jr. said he suffered a sprained back, lower back pain/strain, right thigh pain/strain and a chipped tooth, requiring a root canal and crown.
UPDATE
Attorneys for The Grand Concourse filed an answer to the complaint along with new matter on Jan. 19, which denied the plaintiff’s allegations in their entirety and provided affirmative defenses, including the following:
• Any and all damages sustained by plaintiffs, if any, were the direct result of the plaintiffs’ contributory and/or comparative negligence. As a result, said contributory and/or comparative negligence either bars completely and/or reduces to the extent of such comparative and/or contributory negligence any recovery by plaintiffs, said recovery being expressly denied;
• Negligence or willful and wanton misconduct of plaintiffs or third parties for whom defendant is not responsible was the sole proximate cause of the alleged incident of which plaintiffs now complain;
• No dangerous condition existed;
• Defendant maintained the premises in a proper manner, employed personnel who were sufficiently qualified to perform their job duties and maintain the premises in a proper manner and hired, employed and trained its personnel sufficiently.
For counts of negligence and loss of consortium, the plaintiffs are seeking damages in excess of the applicable arbitration limits, exclusive of interest and costs.
The plaintiffs are represented by Wayne M. Chiurazzi of Chiurazzi & Mengine, in Pittsburgh.
The defendants are represented by Colby S. Bryson of Litchfield Cavo, also in Pittsburgh.
Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas case GD-20-012152
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com