Hazel Maxine Coln and Husband, Carl F. Coln, Appellants v. City of Savannah, Tennessee, Appellee; Debbie Vancleave…

Summary

The court held that an open and obvious danger does not automatically eliminate a landowner's duty of care. Duty depends on whether the foreseeable probability and gravity of harm outweigh the burden of preventive measures, after which the parties' conduct is evaluated under comparative fault. Applying that rule, the court reinstated the judgment against the City and reversed summary judgment for the homeowners. Justice Holder, concurring, would confine duty to the relationship between the parties and leave the reasonableness of the parties' conduct to the factfinder under comparative fault.