Thompson v. Oursler, 318 Ga. App. 377

Oursler, a social guest, stood on a wooden deck attached to the Thompsons' house when the deck detached and collapsed.
Oursler sued the Thompsons for negligent failure to inspect and maintain the deck; his wife asserted a loss of consortium claim.
The appeal arises from the trial court's denial of the Thompsons' motion for summary judgment; interlocutory appeal granted.
There is no evidence in the record explaining why the deck detached or whether it violated any statute, code, or regulation.
Oursler testified he repeatedly used the deck without noticing any instability and described weathered wood as cosmetic, not indicating danger.
Georgia recognizes a social guest (licensee) standard of care, requiring proof of known or reasonably known dangerous conditions and failure to exercise ordinary care; here no evidence the Thompsons knew or should have known of a dangerous condition.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Duty to a licensee for a dangerous deck condition	Oursler argues Thompsons failed to inspect/maintain, creating an unreasonable risk.	Thompsons had no knowledge or reason to know of any dangerous condition; no wilful/wanton conduct shown.	No liability; absence of dangerous-condition knowledge; trial court erred; summary judgment for Thompsons affirmed (reversed on appeal).

Moon v. Homeowners’ Assn. of Sibley Forest, 202 Ga. App. 821 (1992) (social guest as licensee; duty limits for dangerous conditions)
Hartley v. Macon Bacon Tune, 227 Ga. App. 679 (1997) (duty to protect licensees from known or reasonably known dangers; standard for liability)
Lau’s Corp. v. Haskins, 261 Ga. 491 (1991) (recognizes summary judgment standard and absence of evidence issue)
Patterson v. Thomas, 118 Ga. App. 326 (1968) (foundational rule on dangerous conditions and knowledge)
London Iron &c. Co. v. Abney, 245 Ga. 759 (1980) (further articulates duty related to dangerous conditions on premises)