In Faughey v. New 56-79 IG Assoc., L.P., 2017 NY Slip Op 02608 (App. Div. 1st Dept. April 4, 2017), the court affirmed the dismissal of negligence claim against the owner and tenant arising from the murder of Kathryn P. Faughey by David Tarloff. From the decision: The motion court correctly dismissed the complaint. Even…
Read More Owner, Tenant Not Liable in Negligence Case Arising From Tarloff MurderIn Scavetta v. Wechsler, 2017 NY Slip Op 01985 (App. Div. 1st Dept. March 16, 2017), the court applied the “vicious propensity” rule to affirm the summary judgment dismissal of a personal injury case arising from a dog escaping from an unsecured bike rack. At the same time, the court “acknowledge[d] plaintiffs’ persuasive argument that…
Read More Court (Reluctantly) Applies “Vicious Propensity” Rule to Dismiss Personal Injury Case Arising From Escaping DogIn James v. 1620 Westchester Ave. LLC, 2017 NY Slip Op 01303 (App. Div. 1st Dept. Feb. 21, 2017), a personal injury case, the court held that plaintiff was not required to disclose medical records relating to “alcohol and drug treatment, mental health information, and HIV-related information”, even though plaintiff asserted that she suffered from anxiety…
Read More Certain Medical Records Not Subject to Disclosure in Personal Injury CaseIn Jeremias v. Lake Forest Estates, No. 2015-08003, 2017 WL 424673 (N.Y. App. Div. 2d Dept. Feb. 1, 2017), a personal injury slip/trip-and-fall case, the court affirmed the lower court’s denial of defendant’s motion for summary judgment. The law, as summarized by the court: A defendant moving for summary judgment in a slip-and-fall case has the…
Read More Testimony About General Cleaning Practices Insufficient to Establish Summary Judgment for Defendant in Slip/Fall Personal Injury CaseIn Bentick v. Gatchalian, 2017 NY Slip Op 01172 (App. Div. 2d Dept. Feb. 15, 2017), an automobile accident case, the court affirmed the lower court’s decision granting plaintiff summary judgment on the issue of liability. Plaintiff and defendant collided “while the plaintiff was in the process of making a left turn from westbound Hillside Avenue…
Read More Auto-Accident Plaintiff Entitled to Summary Judgment; Evidence Demonstrated That Defendant Went Through Red LIghtIn Ledesma v. AMA Grocery, Corp., 42 N.Y.S.3d 157, 158 (N.Y. App. Div. 1st Dept. Dec. 6, 2016), a personal injury trip-and-fall case, the court affirmed the denial of summary judgment to the landlord/defendant. In this case, plaintiff alleged that they sustained injuries when they fell on a raised metal strip at the edge of…
Read More Landlord Not Entitled to Summary Judgment in Trip-and-Fall CaseIn Bogaty v. Bluestone Realty NY, Inc., 2016 NY Slip Op 08343 (App. Div. 2d Dept. Dec. 14, 2016), the court affirmed the dismissal of plaintiff’s trip-and-fall personal injury lawsuit. Here, “plaintiff allegedly tripped and fell over a wheel stop in a parking space at a small supermarket located in Great Neck.” The court summarized…
Read More Trip/Fall Case Properly Dismissed; Wheel Stop Was Open and Obvious and Not Inherently DangeousSanta Claus has a difficult job. In addition to needing to violate the laws of physics, there’s always the risk of injury. This could happen in many ways, including Falling off an icy/unsalted roof, Getting stuck in a too-narrow chimney, Being burned by a lit fireplace upon descending down a chimney, Tripping and falling over scattered…
Read More Ho, Ho, Ho…Ouch! Can an Injured Santa Claus (Successfully) Sue?In Vera v. Low Income Mktg. Corp., 2016 NY Slip Op 08318 (App. Div. 1st Dept. Dec. 13, 2016), a personal injury/construction accident case, the court explained its decision to grant plaintiff’s, and deny defendant’s, motion for summary judgment. At issue was plaintiff’s status. From the decision: The motion court properly granted plaintiffs’ motion for partial summary…
Read More Workers’ Compensation Board Finding Regarding “Employment” Was Not Preclusive in Construction Accident (Labor Law § 240(1)) Case; Injured Plaintiff Was Not a “Volunteer”In Serin v. Soulcycle Holdings, LLC, 2016 NY Slip Op 08179 (App. Div. 1st Dept. Dec. 6, 2016), the Appellate Division unanimously reversed a lower court’s order granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment. The court held: Although defendant made a prima facie showing that the spin cycle on which plaintiff was injured was not defective and…
Read More Spin Cycle Personal Injury Case Continues; Claim Not Barred By Release