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THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
___________________________
Hillsborough-northern judicial district
No. 96-464
MARGARET VALENTI
v.
NET PROPERTIES MANAGEMENT, INC.
March 5, 1998
Devine, Millimet & Branch, P.A., of Manchester (Andrew D. Dunn and Ovide M. Lamontagne on the brief, and Mr. Dunn orally), for the plaintiff.
McDonough & O'Shaughnessy, P.A., of Manchester (Michael B. O'Shaughnessy and Robert G. Whaland on the brief, and Mr. Whaland orally), for the defendant.
BROCK, C.J. The plaintiff, Margaret Valenti, slipped and fractured her left hip while on the premises of the defendant, NET Properties Management, Inc. Following a trial in Superior Court (Abramson, J.), the jury returned a verdict for the defendant. We reverse and remand.
The Bedford Mall (mall), located in Bedford, is owned and managed by the defendant. The defendant hired an independent contractor to design the mall's entryway, and another to maintain the mall's entryway and floors. On November 23, 1994, the plaintiff slipped and fell as she walked up the entryway to the mall, allegedly because the floor was wet from the rain and snow that had fallen earlier in the day. The plaintiff fractured her left hip as a result of the fall and subsequently underwent surgery and physical therapy.
At trial, the plaintiff asserted two theories of negligence against the defendant. The plaintiff claimed that the defendant was personally negligent in the design, construction, or maintenance of the entryway, and vicariously liable for the negligence of its independent contractors. The jury returned a verdict for the defendant, and this appeal followed. On appeal, the plaintiff argues that the trial court erred in: (1) instructing the jury that a business landowner may delegate its duty to maintain the safety of its premises; and (2) excluding evidence regarding the defendant's role in the placement of safety mats at the entrance to the mall following the accident.
The defendant argued at trial that because it had hired independent contractors to design and maintain the mall's entryway, the mall could only incur liability if it unreasonably delegated these duties. The defendant's theory was premised on the general rule that an employer of an independent contractor is not vicariously liable for the contractor's negligence. See Restatement (Second) of Torts