Background
Denisha Coleman sued Tyler Judson, Waffle House, Incorporated d/b/a Waffle House, and ABC Insurance Company in Louisiana’s 19th Judicial District Court. Her claims against Waffle House arose from a criminal act committed by a third party on the business’s premises.
After the district court issued a May 12, 2026 judgment denying Waffle House the relief it sought, Waffle House applied to the Louisiana Court of Appeal, First Circuit, for supervisory review. The appellate court considered whether Waffle House was entitled to summary judgment under Louisiana’s duty-risk framework.
The Court’s Holding
The First Circuit granted Waffle House’s writ application and held that the company was entitled to summary judgment. The court explained that business owners generally have no duty to protect patrons from third parties’ criminal acts, but must implement reasonable protective measures when such acts are foreseeable.
The court concluded that the particular risk Coleman encountered was not sufficiently foreseeable or easily associated with Waffle House’s duty to maintain reasonably safe premises. Because the risk fell outside the scope of that duty, the court reversed the district court’s May 12, 2026 judgment, rendered summary judgment for Waffle House, and dismissed Coleman’s claims against it.
Key Takeaways
- Louisiana courts apply the duty-risk analysis when assessing a business’s liability to a patron for a third party’s criminal conduct.
- A business’s duty to take reasonable protective measures arises when the criminal conduct is foreseeable.
- The First Circuit found Coleman’s particular risk insufficiently foreseeable and dismissed her claims against Waffle House on summary judgment.
Why It Matters
The decision reinforces that a criminal act occurring on business premises does not, by itself, place resulting injuries within the business owner’s duty. A plaintiff must establish that the particular criminal risk was sufficiently foreseeable or closely associated with the duty to maintain reasonably safe premises.