In Coyle v. Historic Mission Inn Corp., (Cal. Ct. App., June 15, 2018, No. E066265), Michele Coyle brought a premises liability action against the Historic Mission Inn Corporation (“Mission Inn”) for injuries she sustained as a result of a bite from a black widow spider.
Ms. Coyle was a patron at the Mission Inn restaurant where she ate lunch with a friend on the restaurant’s patio. She took off an over-blouse she was wearing and placed it on an empty chair or low concrete wall. Later, she put the over-blouse back on and felt a sharp pain in her shoulder blade. She said that she felt as though she had just been bitten. The next morning she was unable to move her arms or legs, and had to use her nose to dial for help. She was admitted to the hospital and doctors determined that spider venom had reached Ms. Coyle’s spinal fluid, which caused permanent damage. She ultimately lost function in her left hand and leg.
Ms. Coyle brought a premises liability action against the Mission Inn alleging that the owners owed a duty of reasonable care to its patrons in maintaining the property. This included warning patrons of the presence of black widow spiders, and taking remedial action in the form of pest control.
Mission Inn brought a Motion for Summary Judgment asserting that it did not owe Ms...
