Below is the complaint filed yesterday by plaintiff Michelle Nelson against Con Edison and the owner (Kaoru Demler Murmatsu) of 1646 Park Avenue, one of the buildings that collapsed on March 12th following an apparent gas explosion, killing and injuring several people. Plaintiff alleges that, as a result of the explosion, she fell and sustained injuries…
Read More Harlem Gas Explosion LawsuitHappy St. Patrick’s Day! On my way to the gym – yes, you read that right – this morning, I passed by one of the East Village’s most prominent watering holes: McSorley’s Old Ale House. Though it was only about 8:30 am, the crowds of green-adorned men and women were gathering for what appeared to…
Read More McSorley’s Path to Gender EqualityWhite Castle can’t buy advertising like this. Below is a recent federal complaint, in which plaintiffs allege that they were arrested and struck by NYPD officers after refusing the officers’ demand for their White Castle food. According to a recent Gothamist article: Brooklyn residents Danny Maisonet and Kenneth Glover say that they procured White Castle meals on Halloween 2012…
Read More Lawsuit Alleges NYPD Officers Subjected Men to False Arrest and Police Brutality For Refusing to Hand Over White Castle FoodIn Lawson v. FMR, the Supreme Court recently broadened the reach of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which was enacted following the collapse of Enron Corporation. The whistleblower portion of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, codified at 18 U.S.C. § 1514A, provides: No [public] company . . . , or any officer, employee, contractor, subcontractor, or agent…
Read More Supreme Court Holds That Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act Protects Employees of Private ContractorsIn Swift v. New York Transit Authority, the Appellate Division, First Department modified the trial court’s order to deny defendant’s motion for summary judgment to dismiss plaintiff’s claims of “permanent consequential and significant limitations in use of the knees and a 90/180-day injury.” In order to proceed in court, plaintiff was required to present evidence…
Read More Plaintiff Raises Triable Issue of Fact that Knee Injury Was a “Serious Injury” Under Insurance Law 5102(d)Below and here is the complaint filed this week in New York State Supreme court by Christina Young against Steven Hall & Partners LLC and Steven Hall personally. Plaintiff alleges, among other things, that “Hall and others have instigated and engaged in making numerous inappropriate verbal comments and other sexually suggestive activities”, including “encouraging female Managing…
Read More Sexual Harassment and Hostile Work Environment Lawsuit Against Steven Hall & PartnersIn a recent decision, the Southern District of New York recently denied defendant UBS Financial Services’ motion for summary judgment on plaintiff’s claims that she was terminated in retaliation for complaining about a co-worker’s sexist comment, and because of her revelation that she is gay. Shortly before plaintiff’s termination, plaintiff told the company that she had…
Read More Retaliation and Sexual Orientation Discrimination Claims Continue Against UBSThe Southern District of New York recently reiterated, in Wermann v. Excel Dentistry PC, that “a plaintiff may bring a retaliation claim stemming from an employer’s opposition to her unemployment benefits application” and that “filing retaliatory counterclaims may violate” the New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL) and New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL). The…
Read More Plaintiff Sufficiently Alleged Retaliation Based on Defendants’ Opposing Unemployment Benefits and “Frivolous” Counterclaims in Sexual Harassment CaseBy this point you’ve probably heard about Roy Ortiz, the Colorado man who, after being rescued from a submerged car, is considering suing his rescuers, apparently because they took too long to free him. The reactions of many were predictable: outrage, directed at Mr. Ortiz and (of course) his lawyer. Here’s one of many examples taken from…
Read More Suing Your Rescuers – Ridiculous! Or Maybe Not…In Johnson v. KS Transportation, a car accident case, the Appellate Division, First Department modified a summary judgment dismissing plaintiff’s complaint on the ground that plaintiff did not suffer a “serious injury” within the meaning of Insurance Law § 5102(d). Section 5104(a) of New York’s No-Fault Law provides, in pertinent part, that “in any action by or…
Read More Fact Issue as to Whether Knee Injury Meets “Serious Injury” Threshold Precludes Summary Judgment for Defendant in Car Accident Case