In the unfortunate case of Kensington Place Owners Assn., Inc. v. Thomas, A Georgia Appeals Court finds that a homeowners’ association is ultimately not responsible for a child’s fatality, which occurs on the property of the condominium. While the circumstances surrounding the case are undoubtedly tragic, the association clearly presents several merit-worthy arguments.
Risks and Liabilities: A Georgia appeals court ruled that a homeowners association was not liable for fatal injuries suffered by a child who pushed a dead tree over in the subdivision common area.
Tenita Thomas lived in Kensington Place subdivision with her 13-year-old son, Christopher Baxter. On April 10, 2008, while Baxter and his friends were playing in the subdivision’s wooded common area, they came upon a dead tree. The three boys alternated pushing the tree and watching the others push it. One of the boys recorded their actions on his cell phone camera.