Personal Injury

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In Orsos v. Hudson Tr. Corp., the Appellate Division, First Department recently affirmed the dismissal of plaintiff’s complaint seeking damages for personal injuries she sustained in a bus accident.  It held: Defendants established their entitlement to judgment as a matter of law by demonstrating the applicability of the emergency doctrine in this action where plaintiff…

Read More Application of “Emergency Doctrine” Results in Dismissal of Bus Accident Case
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In Devito v. Feliciano, decided November 26, 2013, the New York Court of Appeals held that the trial court erroneously failed to give a “missing witness” charge in a car accident case. The court held: [W]hen a missing witness charge is requested in a civil case, the uncalled witness’s testimony may properly be considered cumulative…

Read More Failure to Give “Missing Witness” Charge Results in New Trial Following Defense Verdict in Car Accident Case
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In Pelletier v. Lahm, decided November 20, 2013, the Appellate Division, Second Department upheld the trial court’s decision to instruct the jury as to the “emergency doctrine” and the resulting jury verdict for defendant Brittany Lahm in connection with a fatal car crash. Specifically, it affirmed the trial court’s denial of plaintiff’s motion, pursuant to CPLR…

Read More Emergency Doctrine Properly Applied to Exonerate Driver Brittany Lahm in “Bikini Top” Fatal Car Accident Case
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In Diaz v. 5-01-5-17 48th Avenue, LLC, the Second Department recently reversed a denial of summary judgment for plaintiff, and found that plaintiff established his entitlement to summary judgment, on his claim under New York Labor Law § 240(1). Initially, the court held that “no triable issue of fact existed as to the defendants’ ownership or…

Read More Fall From Collapsing, Unsecured Ladder Results in Summary Judgment for Plaintiff Worker in Labor Law § 240(1) Case
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In Freeman v. City of New York (decided November 20, 2013), the Appellate Division, Second Department held that plaintiff failed to state a claim for relief. Plaintiff alleged that her mother Yvonne Freeman died after the December 27, 2010 blizzard because defendants “were negligent in failing to provide emergency services, and in failing to prepare for,…

Read More Trial Court Should Have Dismissed Blizzard Death Lawsuit Due to Absence of “Special Relationship”
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In Denermark v 2857 W. 8th St. Assoc., a trip and fall case, the Appellate Division, Second Department reversed a grant of summary judgment to defendants. Plaintiff was injured when she “overstepped” a single step and caused her to trip and fall onto the adjacent sidewalk while exiting a building owned by defendant 2857 West 8th…

Read More Right of Entry to Make Repairs Subjected Out-of-Possession Landlord to Liability in Trip and Fall Case
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Recently in Amadu v. Stratus Hacking Corp., a car accident case, the New York Supreme Court, Queens County held that plaintiff presented sufficient evidence to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether he suffered a “serious injury” within the meaning of Insurance Law Section 5102(d). The “serious injury” issue is critical in an automobile…

Read More Medical Evidence of “Strained Lumbar Spine” and “Right Ankle Sprain” Sufficient to Create Fact Issue Regarding “Serious Injury” in Car Accident Case
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In DiDonna v. Houck, a pedestrian-knockdown car accident case decided November 13, 2013, the Appellate Division, Second Department agreed with the trial court that the jury’s finding as to liability was not supported by a fair interpretation of the evidence. In particular, it found that it attributed too much liability to plaintiff, and too little…

Read More Jury Attributed Too Much Fault to Struck Pedestrian in Car Accident Case, Court Holds
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In Torres v. 1420 Realty LLC, the Appellate Division, First Department recently applied the doctrine of “superseding cause” to affirm the dismissal of plaintiff’s personal injury case. Under that doctrine, a defendant is relieved of liability where, after his negligence, an unforeseeable superseding event breaks the causal connection between his negligence and a plaintiff’s injuries.…

Read More Court Dismisses Personal Injury Case, Finding That Use of Inverted Bucket as Step Stool on Uneven Floor Was “Superseding Cause” of Injury
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