Woman Sues Logan’s Roadhouse in Huntsville After Fall

Can peanut shells be the cause of a lawsuit?  It appears so as a Madison County resident is suing a restaurant over peanut shells.

Alice Foster has filed a lawsuit against Logan’s Roadhouse, a casual atmosphere steakhouse, in Huntsville, Alabama.  Foster alleges that while meeting family members for dinner at the restaurant, she followed the hostess to her table and her left foot slid on peanut shells, which caused her to fall to the floor.  In that fall, Foster broke her femur.  Miss Foster was transported by ambulance to the hospital where she underwent surgery on her leg. 

In the lawsuit, Foster states that Logan’s allowed or created a dangerous condition, the peanut shells on the floor, and this dangerous condition caused her to fall, thus breaking her leg.  The lawsuit also alleges that Logan’s knew of the dangerous conditions and yet failed to warn the plaintiff of the hazard. 

Logan’s Roadhouse is known for providing buckets of peanuts for their customers to munch on while awaiting the arrival of their food.  If you have ever been in a Logan’s Roadhouse restaurant before, it’s not difficult to notice the peanuts as not only are the shells all over the floor, but there is a big barrel of peanuts when you enter the restaurant as well.  One step into the seating area of a Logan’s restaurant and you can hear and feel the crunch of the peanut shells underfoot.  Logan’s does not provide receptacles for the peanut shells, but expects diners to push the shells off the table onto the floors of the restaurant where the shells will be swept up after the restaurant has closed for the night.

Miss Foster’s suit sounds much like a suit that was filed against a Texas Roadhouse restaurant back in December of 2003.  Texas Roadhouse also supplies peanuts to diners, who then throw the peanut shells on the restaurant floor.  In this lawsuit, a female diner was being led towards her table when she slipped on peanut shells resulting in an undisclosed injury to her leg.  The plaintiff in this case, Daryla Maxwell, filed suit against the owner of the restaurant, blaming him for allowing the peanut shell hazard to lie on the floor.  The defendant replied and blamed the incident on Maxwell’s failure to maintain a proper lookout.  The jury sided with the Texas Roadhouse restaurant owner in that they found the plaintiff to have been more than 50 percent at fault for the fall.

Foster is not only suing Logan’s Roadhouse, but Randy Yarbrough.  It would seem that Foster’s attorney, Rebekah McKinney, researched the background of previous peanut shell suits in restaurants as Foster is asking for a non-jury trial, plus unspecified punitive and compensatory damages in the lawsuit. 

When you are injured in any type of accident, it is important to seek medical care immediately. It may also be beneficial to seek counsel from an experienced personal injury lawyer who can offer you the personalized guidance needed to pursue the best resolution to your situation.

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