Governmental Liability

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In Margerum v. City of Buffalo, 2015 NY Slip Op 01378 [24 NY3d 721] (N.Y. Ct. App. Feb. 17, 2015), the New York Court of Appeals held that a notice of claim need not be filed for a Human Rights Law claim against a municipality. In this case, plaintiffs – 12 white firefighters – alleged that…

Read More Discrimination Claims Under the Human Rights Law Are Not Subject to New York’s Notice of Claim Requirement, Court of Appeals Holds
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A lawsuit filed in the Southern District of New York, captioned Lampley et al v. Alexander Rojas and the City of New York, SDNY 14-cv-8832 (Nov. 6, 2014), alleges that a NYPD lieutenant, Alexander Rojas, subjected plaintiffs, 3 NYPD officers, to “egregious sexual harassment”, including groping the intimate areas of plaintiffs’ bodies; displaying to plaintiffs…

Read More NYPD Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Includes Allegations of Groping, Masturbation, and Penis Exposure
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In Delva v. New York City Tr. Auth., the Appellate Division, Second Department explained the “emergency doctrine” in the context of a pedestrian knockdown case. A jury found in favor of plaintiff, and defendants moved to set aside the verdict pursuant to CPLR 4404(a). The trial court denied defendants’ motion, and the appellate court affirmed. Specifically,…

Read More Trial Court Properly Declined to Charge Jury with the “Emergency Doctrine” in Bus Accident/Pedestrian Knockdown Personal Injury Case
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Winter is coming. For New Yorkers who commute on NYC subways, that means increased chances of slipping and falling on snow and ice. However, slips and falls on snow and ice don’t always give rise to liability. One example of a failed snow/ice case is Clement v. The New York City Transit Authority, decided November 13,…

Read More “Storm in Progress” Defense Kills Slip-and-Fall Lawsuit
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The elements of a negligence claim brought under New York law are well settled. They are: (1) a duty owed to the plaintiff by the defendant; (2) breach of that duty; and (3) injury substantially caused by that breach. Thus, even if the defendant is negligent, there can be no recovery unless the plaintiff shows that…

Read More “Doored” Cyclist’s Case Dismissed Against MTA
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In Parra v. City of White Plains (decided Sept. 4, 2014), the Southern District of New York held that plaintiff plausibly alleged some, but not other, claims of discrimination. Plaintiff, a Hispanic female police officer, alleged that defendants subjected her to a hostile work environment based on sexual harassment, retaliated against her for complaining about the…

Read More Pairing Harassment Victim With Harassers Was Unreasonable, Supporting Vicarious Liability in Police Officer’s Sexual Harassment/Hostile Work Environment Case
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In Rodriguez v. Woods (a snow/ice slip-and-fall case) the Appellate Division, First Department reversed summary judgment for defendant City of New York. Plaintiff sued to recover for injuries sustained when she fell on an icy sidewalk. The main dispute in this case was “whether plaintiff raised an issue of fact as to whether the ice on…

Read More Injured Plaintiff Presents Sufficient Facts to Overcome Summary Judgment in Snow/Ice Slip-and-Fall Personal Injury Case
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In Achaibar v. City of New York, a personal injury car accident case, the Supreme Court, Queens County denied defendant City’s motion for summary judgment. Here are the facts: [Plaintiff testified that] the traffic signal, at the intersection of Hillside Avenue and 212th Street, was blinking yellow-amber at the time of the occurrence. Notably, the…

Read More No Summary Judgment for Defendant City in Car Accident Case Involving Alleged Broken Traffic Light
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In Williams v. New York City Tr. Auth. (decided 10/8/14), the Appellate Division, Second Department affirmed a judgement entered on a jury award of $480,000 (reached by applying the jury’s determination that defendant was 80% at fault in the happening of the accident to its assessment of $600,000 in damages sustained by plaintiff). Here are the…

Read More Court Affirms $480,000 Jury Award to Trip-and-Fall Plaintiff
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In Ortiz v. New York City Housing Authority, decided Sept. 11, 2014, the Appellate Division, First Department affirmed the denial of defendant’s motion for summary judgment. In this personal injury slip/trip-and-fall case, plaintiff sued after she was injured after falling on ice on the sidewalk adjacent to defendant’s residential building. In finding that the trial…

Read More Plaintiff Overcomes Summary Judgment in Ice Trip/Fall Case
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