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Souci v. William C. Smith & Co.12/7/2000
that " laster cracks in [his bathroom] wall were never repaired," that some of the bathroom's "plaster bubbled up from the wall," that his kitchen floor became increasingly uneven, and that several doors in his apartment were "warped and did not fit properly." To put it simply, anybody whose apartment was in such a condition after it had been "repaired" would most probably enjoy it a good deal less than he did before. Consequently, we conclude that Mr. Souci has sufficiently alleged an injury to his leasehold interest which, if proved, would entitle him to recover from Smith & Co. on a negligence theory.
Moreover, if he can establish the truth of his allegations, Mr. Souci may also be entitled to recover for some of the actual physical damage to his unit. Once a tenant has suffered an injury to an interest related to his leasehold, the associated "out-of-pocket expenses for repairs" also affect that interest and may therefore be compensable. Gaetan, supra, 729 A.2d at 898. Here, Mr. Souci claims that he will personally have to pay for the additional repairs that will be required in order to restore his unit to its previous condition. If he demonstrates at trial that he will have to incur these expenses as a result of Smith & Co.'s failure to exercise due care, then such expenses will be logically tied to Mr. Souci's loss of enjoyment. In such an eventuality, these expenses would "affect interests" as a tenant and would therefore be compensable. Id.
III. CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, the order granting summary judgment is reversed. The case is remanded to the trial court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
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