| Court: | PA Supreme Court |
| Facts: | Retimeyers rented a house. Mrs. Reitmeyer falls and injures herself as a result of a defect in the porch. The defect was present when the lease was executed. |
| Posture: | Appeal from trial, presumably finding for Sprecher, the landlord. |
| Issue: | Is a landlord who fails fulfill the promise to fix defects known at the time of the lease liable in tort for injuries caused thereby? |
| Holding: | Yes. |
| Rule: | We overrule our prior precedent and adopt R2T § 357. |
| Reasoning: | Tenants leasing defective premises are likely to be poor. Landlords assume limited obligations in exchange for rent. It's a special relationship, and tenants will rely on landlords for repairs. Landlords retain control over the premises. Tenants don't bargain freely. |
| Dicta: | Dissent: certainty and stability are essential; this will depress property interests. This flies in the face of stare decisis, parol evidence, contributory negligence, and assumption of risk. |