Gail Helm and Scott Helm, Plaintiffs Below, Appellants v. 206 Massachusetts Avenue, LLC, and Gallo Realty, Inc…

Summary

The court reversed summary judgment for the property owner and rental agent because the plaintiff’s decision to descend a dark stairway implicated secondary, not primary, assumption of risk. Secondary assumption of risk is subsumed within comparative negligence, and the percentage of the plaintiff’s fault ordinarily must be determined by a jury rather than as a matter of law. The court did not reach the indemnification or breach-of-contract issues because the lower court’s rulings on those issues were cursory or dicta.