George Washington University v. Weintraub, 458 A.2d 43 (1983)

Citation: George Washington University v. Weintraub, 458 A.2d 43 (1983)
Parent Document: George Washington University v. Weintraub, 458 A.2d 43 (1983)
Jurisdiction: DC (municipal)
Effective Date: 1983-02-25
Original Source: https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/2298306/george-washington-university-v-... ↗

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. My colleagues conclude that res ipsa loquitur is inapplicable because of appellees’ concession “in their brief that the flood originated from a toilet in Apartment 502” and “the trial court’s conclusion that ‘[tjhere was no evidence to show who was at fault in connection with the pressure on the valve which apparently caused the flood.’ ” Ante at 45 n. 3. Nowhere in the record is there testimony that the flood originated from a toilet, but even if it did there is no implication, let alone evidence, that someone outside the landlord’s control stuffed a toilet — which is the inference my colleagues appear to be drawing. The testimony of the landlord’s property manager, Mr. Hart, is consistent with a finding that pressure built up elsewhere in the pipeline and forced a blockage (initially located somewhere else) out through pipes in the above apartment. The burden of his testimony, therefore, was that the landlord and its agents “were never able to determine” the cause of the damage, not an implication that an upstairs tenant must have jammed a toilet.

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