Molfino v. Yuen

Plaintiff sued the County of Hawai’i for negligence, alleging that it breached a legal duty to use reasonable care in maintaining pertinent correspondence in its property files contained in the Planning Department and that this breach caused Plaintiff monetary damages. The circuit court granted the County’s motion for summary judgment, concluding that the County had no statutorily-based duty to maintain Planning Department records with unerring accuracy. The intermediate court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) neither Rule 1-8 of the Hawai’i County Planning Department Rules of Practice and Procedure nor Haw. Rev. Stat. 92F provide a statutory basis for imposing negligence liability upon the County Planning Department based on a breach of any duty to maintain its property files in accurate and timely condition at all times; and (2) policy considerations counsel against the judicial creation of such a legal duty under the common law . View "Molfino v. Yuen" on Justia Law