Problem
Traci Kennear checked into the Pullman House Hotel. During her stay, jewelry with an estimated value of $5,000 was stolen from her hotel room. Ms. Kennear maintained that the hotel should be responsible for the jewelry's replacement and sued the hotel for the amount of the stolen jewelry. The hotel stated that its liability was limited to $300 under state law because Ms. Kennear failed to deposit the jewelry in the safe deposit boxes provided by the hotel.
Ms. Kennear's attorney countered that the notice of the law, which the legislature stated must be "conspicuously posted" in order to be applied, was in fact posted on the inside of a dresser drawer filled with extra blankets for the guestroom, and that, further, the type size was so small that an average person would not be able to read the notice from a distance of 2 feet. The hotel replied that the notice was, in its view, conspicuously posted, and that Ms. Kennear should have asked for help from the hotel if she could not find or read the notice.
• Did the hotel comply with the state legislature's requirement that the notice be conspicuously posted?
• How could the hotel manager in this case ensure compliance with the "conspicuous posting" requirement of the state legislature?