Stout v. Costco Wholesale Corp.

Plaintiff filed a personal injury lawsuit after she tripped and fell while stepping over a gas hose while filling her car at a gas station operated by the defendant. The trial court granted summary judgment for the defendant and plaintiff appealed. On appeal, she argued that the trial court erred because it found that the condition was open and obvious, failed to perform the requisite duty analysis, and that the defendant imperfectly pleaded contributory negligence as an affirmative defense. The appellate court found the issue of whether the condition was open and obvious was dispositive and affirmed, explaining that the condition was open and obvious because it was created by the plaintiff and that none of the exceptions to the open and obvious doctrine applied under the facts of the case. (SCHOSTOK and MULLEN, concurring)