Personal Injury

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In Brandt v. Zahner, decided Oct. 9, 2013, the Appellate Division, Second Department reversed summary judgment for defendant driver, thereby reinstating plaintiff pedestrian’s claims. Plaintiff claimed he was ” injured when, after crossing the westbound lane of I.U. Willets Road in Nassau County, he was struck by a vehicle driven by the defendant in the eastbound…

Read More Plaintiff Pedestrian’s Lawsuit Continues; Defendant Driver Did Not See Plaintiff Prior to Contact
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Winter is coming, along with winter-related hazards. Among them is so-called “black ice“. In a recent slip/fall case, Rodriguez v. Bronx Zoo Restaurant (decided Oct. 1), the Appellate Division, First Department reversed the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to defendants. Plaintiff alleged that she slipped on a patch of black ice on a “dirty or…

Read More Ice Slip/Fall Case Continues in Light of Fact Issues as to Constructive Notice
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The Appellate Division, Second Department recently affirmed (in Paredes v. 1668 Realty Assoc.) summary judgment for plaintiff on his New York Labor Law § 240(1) cause of action. Labor Law § 240(1) is a powerful statute that provides significant protections for injured construction workers in New York.  As explained by the court: The primary purpose…

Read More Masonry Worker Struck By Debris-Filled Bucket Wins on Liability Under Labor Law § 240(1)
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In Doerr v. Goldsmith, the First Department recently allowed plaintiff’s injury claim, arising from an animal encounter, to proceed on a theory of negligence. In sum, the court held that the focus (at least in cases where an allegation of “vicious propensity” is not advanced) is on the dog’s humans, rather than the dog. Plaintiff…

Read More Court Allows Negligence Claim Against Dog’s Owner to Continue
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In Declercq v. WWP Office LLC, 2013 NY Slip Op 51552(U) (N.Y. Sup. Ct. N.Y. Co. Sept. 24, 2013), the court awarded partial summary judgment to plaintiff on his claim that he was injured after falling from a ladder. The court’s decision provides a good overview of the law under Labor Law § 240(1), and in particular…

Read More Employee Who Fell From Ladder While Cleaning Wins On Liability Under New York Labor Law § 240(1)
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In a recent rear-end collision case, Neat v. Pfeffer, Supreme Court, New York County (Judge Bluth) allowed defendant’s expert Dr. Fijan, a biomechanical engineer, to testify “as to the forces involved in the accident” but not “as to whether those forces could have caused plaintiff’s injuries.” The court reached this determination following a so-called Frye hearing to…

Read More Biomechanical Expert Permitted to Testify as to Forces, But Not Injuries
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In Matter of Allstate Insurance Co. v. Reyes, the Appellate Division, Second Department addressed the “ownership, maintenance or use” requirement necessary to trigger supplementary uninsured/underinsured motorist (SUM) coverage in connection with a car-related injury. Plaintiff was injured while passing a vehicle when a rottweiler dog “extended its head from inside the vehicle and bit her…

Read More Car Dog Bite Fails to Trigger SUM Coverage
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In DeVito v. Peri, a Brooklyn trial court recently awarded summary judgment to the defendant and dismissed plaintiff’s claims for medical malpractice, lack of informed consent, and wrongful death. The claims arose from the murder by the doctor’s patient (Mr. DeVito) of his wife (who was plaintiff’s mother). Specifically, plaintiff alleged that defendant doctor Peri…

Read More Zoloft-Prescribing Doctor Did Not Owe Duty to Patient’s Murder Victim
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The Appellate Division, First Department, today affirmed (in Renteria v. Simakov, 2013 NY Slip Op 06071) a grant of summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs, and the denial of summary judgment to defendants, in a case involving a rear-end collision. Defendant taxi driver Daza hit plaintiff in the rear after plaintiff stopped in the left lane…

Read More Court Affirms Summary Judgment for Plaintiff in Rear-End Collision Case
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Those Romanians – always causing trouble.  First Dracula, now this. (That said, the Romanian I’m married to happens to be perfect.) A New York trial court recently held, in Weason v. Permanent Mission of Romania to the UN and Romania, that defendants were not immune under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act for injuries allegedly sustained…

Read More Romania Not Immune in Slip/Fall Case
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