Legal-Ease: Pope Francis and elevator malfunctions

Ohio has several laws in place to ensure that elevators are safe and operable. The laws focus mainly on the construction, registration and inspection of elevators.

Ohio elevator laws were last significantly updated in 2012. The Ohio Department of Commerce administers and enforces elevator laws.

Two weeks ago, the leader of more than 1.2 billion Roman Catholics worldwide was almost a half-hour late for a public appearance. The reason? Pope Francis got stuck in a malfunctioning passenger elevator at the Vatican.

Elevators have become so reliable over the last several years that we seldom take time to think about their potential malfunction. “Runaway” elevators and vacated elevator shafts make for exciting movie scenes but are experiences we very fortunately seldom hear of anymore. Nowadays, the most common accidents involving elevators are usually linked to stalled elevators, elevators with insufficient brakes or elevators that change floors without the doors closing. Even though infrequent, elevator-related injuries are often very serious and life-threatening.

Read more about elevator laws in Ohio in Lee’s article in the Lima News here: Legal-Ease: Pope Francis and elevator malfunctions

Source: LimaOhio.com, “Legal-Ease: Pope Francis and elevator malfunctions,” by Lee R. Schroeder, September 7, 2019

Lee R. Schroeder is an Ohio licensed attorney at Schroeder Law LLC in Putnam County. He limits his practice to business, real estate, estate planning and agriculture issues in northwest Ohio. He can be reached at Lee@LeeSchroeder.com or at 419-659-2058. This article is not intended to serve as legal advice, and specific advice should be sought from the licensed attorney of your choice based upon the specific facts and circumstances that you face.

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