Kunst v. Pass, 1998 MT 71 (1998)

Citation: Kunst v. Pass, 1998 MT 71 (1998)
Parent Document: Kunst v. Pass, 1998 MT 71 (1998)
Jurisdiction: Montana (state)
Effective Date: 1998-03-31
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/884766/kunst-v-pass/ ↗

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¶28 One Montana case has touched upon the issue of a landlord's liability
to third persons under the Act. Rennick v. Hoover (1980), 186 Mont. 167, 606
P.2d 1079, overruled on other grounds by Richardson v. Corvallis Pub. School
Dist. (Mont. 1997), 950 P.2d 748, 54 St. Rep. 1422. In Rennick, a guest of a
tenant brought suit against the landlords after he fell on an icy cement slab in
the common area of the apartment building. Rennick, 186 Mont. at 169, 606
P.2d at 1080. This Court declined to address the landlord's statutory liability
under the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, because the plaintiff was not
a tenant. This Court stated:
     In Montana, a landlord owes a duty to the tenant to "keep all
     common areas of the premises in a clean and safe condition."
     Section 70-24-303, MCA. However, this appeal does not
     involve an injury to a tenant. . . .
Rennick, 186 Mont. at 170, 606 P.2d at 1081. In making that statement, the
Court provided no further analysis and it is not clear whether the issue of a
landlord's liability to third persons under the Act was actually an issue on
appeal.   The statement constitutes dicta only and was not the holding of the
Court. We thus view the issue of whether a guest of a tenant is a member of
the class that the Act was intended to protect to be one of first impression in

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