Essay Flashcards

(a) A restaurant chain, CROWN EATS, hires a floor supervisor to manage customer flow during a weekend promo. While directing a crowded queue, the supervisor pushes a customer, MAY, aside to clear the path, and MAY falls, suffers a broken wrist, and seeks damages. Is CROWN EATS legally liable for MAY’s injuries? Identify the controlling doctrine and apply it to the facts.
(b) The same restaurant contracts out cleaning services to an external janitorial firm. A janitor employed by the firm, while cleaning near the dining area after closing, spills a caustic cleaning solution that injures a passerby. Is CROWN EATS liable for this injury? Distinguish liability for employees (within the scope of employment) from liability for independent contractors, and outline the factors that would make CROWN EATS liable in the contractor scenario.