In Philadelphia, property owners are responsible for the repair, upkeep and maintenance of the sidewalks fronting their property.  Specifically, Section 11-505 of the Philadelphia Code states that:

The sidewalks of all public streets, and the roadways and sidewalks of all private streets, shall be graded, curbed, paved and kept in repair at the expense of the owners of the land fronting thereon . . . .

Philadelphia, Pa., City Code § 11-505.  Pennsylvania law provides that property owners have a duty to keep their sidewalks in a reasonably safe condition for travel by the public.  Mull v. Ickes, 994 A.2d 1137 (Pa. Super. 2010).

Property owners must maintain their sidewalks so that they do not present an unreasonable risk of harm to pedestrians. Whether a property owner has complied with this duty must be determined on a case-by case basis by looking at all of the surrounding circumstances.

Id. (quotation marks and citations omitted).  Although property owners have a duty to maintain their sidewalks in a safe condition, property owners may not be responsible for trivial defects that exist in the sidewalks.  See Massman v. Philadelphia, 241 A.2d 921 (Pa. 1968).  A defect may be found to be trivial[1] when it “would be completely unreasonable, impractical and unjustifiable to hold a defendant liable for its existence.”  Id.  In determining whether a defect is trivial, Pennsylvania courts have consistently looked to the circumstances of the defect, including the amount of travel along the sidewalk, whether the defect is in the middle of the walkway, the location of the defect in relation to an entrance of a building, the length of time the defect existed, the character of material with which the walkway is constructed, the nature of the irregularity itself, among other circumstances.  See Henn v. Pittsburg, 22 A.2d 742 (Pa. 1941); Massman, 241 A.2d, at 924; Mull, 994 A.2d, at 1140.

As the circumstances of the defect are critical when analyzing whether a defect on a sidewalk may be actionable, consultation with an attorney is recommended.   If you have been injured in a trip and fall incident, contact Attorney Jeff Stanton for a free consultation.

[1] It should be noted that Pennsylvania law concerning trivial defects originated in order to:

[balance] economic and physical practicality [ ] against the need to protect against property damage and personal injury. Owners of large areas of land, such as railroads and municipalities, cannot reasonably be forced to police each and every square foot for minor depressions and protrusions.

Massman, 241 A.2d 921.