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Crichfield v. Grand Wailea Company7/31/2000
Apartment Owners of Wailua Bayview Apartments, 70 Haw. 415, 415, 772 P.2d 693, 693 (1989)). See also Birmingham v. Fodor's Travel Publications, Inc., 73 Haw. 359, 380, 833 P.2d 70, 81 (1992) ("an occupier of land . . . 'has a duty to use reasonable care for the safety of all persons reasonably anticipated to be upon the premises[,]'" (quoting Pickard v. City & County of Honolulu, 51 Haw. 134, 135, 452 P.2d 445, 446 (1969))); Bidar v. AMFAC, Inc., 66 Haw. 547, 552, 669 P.2d 154, 159 (1983) (applying Pickard duty of care to hotel operator).
Thus, it is an untenable proposition that Grand Wailea does not -- by virtue of a universal defense made applicable by HRUS to an owner of land that the owner has opened to the public for recreational use -- owe a duty to use reasonable care for the safety of the Crichfields, if, as they aver in their affidavits, they entered on and used Grand Wailea's land for the purpose of commercially patronizing the hotel's cafe or, in other words, intending to engage in a purpose that is not "recreational" within the meaning of HRUS. By the same token, the commercial nature of Grand Wailea's operation does not automatically foreclose the availability of a HRUS defense if a person is injured on its "land" while furthering or intending to further a "recreational purpose."
We hold that the Crichfields, by averring in their affidavits that they were on Grand Wailea's "land" for a commercial purpose at the time Cheryl sustained her personal injury , generated a genuine issue of material fact, to wit, whether they were present on Grand Wailea's "land," inter alia, for a commercial purpose at the time of Cheryl's injury, in which case HRUS would not immunize Grand Wailea from liability, or, alternatively, whether they were present for an exclusively recreational purpose, in which case HRUS would be available to Grand Wailea as a defense to the Crichfields' negligence claim. The circuit court therefore erred in granting summary judgment in favor of Grand Wailea and against the Crichfields.
IV. CONCLUSION
Based on the foregoing analysis, we vacate the circuit court's order, filed on September 13, 1999, granting summary and final judgment against them and in favor of Grand Wailea and remand the matter to the circuit court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
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