New California Supreme Court Opinion Re: Plaintiff's Burden to Establish Public Entity Liability of Dangerous Condition
The California Supreme Court published its opinion in Cordova v. City of Los Angeles (Aug. 13, 2015, S208130) __ Cal.4th __, analyzing whether “[Government Code] section 835 [(“section 835”)] requires plaintiffs to show that [an] allegedly dangerous condition caused not only their decedents’ fatal injuries, but also the third party conduct that precipitated the accident.” (Slip opn., p. 1.) The court held that “section 835 does not require plaintiffs to make such a showing.” (Id. at p. 2.)
The Supreme Court determined that “[s]ection 835 requires a plaintiff to show that the public entity’s property was ‘in a dangerous condition at the time of the injury’ and that ‘the injury was proximately caused by the dangerous condition.’” (Slip opn., p. 7, italics in original, quoting Gov. Code, § 835.) The statute defines “‘dangerous condition” as a condition of property that “creates a substantial . . . risk of injury.’” (Ibid., italics added, quoting Gov. Code, § 830.) As such, plaintiffs must show that a dangerous condition of property—a condition that creates a substantial risk of injury to the public—proximately caused plaintiffs’ injuries as a result of the accident. According to the court, “nothing in the statute requires plaintiffs to show that the allegedly dangerous condition also caused the third party conduct that precipitated the accident.” (Ibid.)
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