Personal Injury

by

While “running and playing” with other dogs, defendants’ 50-pound Labrador Retriever, Delilah, knocked plaintiff down from behind, causing serious injuries. The Appellate Division, Third Department last week in Bloom v. Van Lenten dismissed plaintiff’s lawsuit. The lower court allowed plaintiff’s strict liability claim to survive, finding questions of fact as to whether Delilah had “vicious propensities of…

Read More Playful Dog Exhibited “Normal Canine Behavior”, Not “Vicious Propensities”
Share This:
by

Gilchrist v. City of New York, decided on March 7, 2013, contains an important lesson for plaintiffs’ lawyers in personal injury cases:  wherever possible, make sure to specifically request that certain pieces of evidence be preserved.  Here, the defendants’ failure to preserve such specifically requested evidence resulted in sanctions for spoliation of evidence. In this…

Read More Defendants’ Spoliation of Evidence Results in Adverse Inference Charge and Denial of Summary Judgment Motion
Share This:
by

Below is the complaint filed by Chenin Duclos this week against the City of New York and several police officers.  Plaintiff was one of the several bystanders shot by NYPD officers as they attempted to apprehend suspected shooter Jeffrey Johnson near the Empire State Building last August. Specifically, Duclos asserts the following causes of action:  (1)…

Read More Empire State Building NYPD Shooting Lawsuit
Share This:
by

In a June 7, 2012 decision in Arsenault v. New York State, the Appellate Division, Third Department dismissed plaintiffs’ claims (and reversed an earlier decision, which I wrote about here) arising from plaintiff’s decedent being struck and killed by falling rocks while hiking in a state park.  The Court of Claims had denied summary judgment…

Read More State Not Liable for Hiker Death
Share This:
by

In an idiotic article entitled “Justice for Justin” (May 31, 2012), Bill O’Reilly claims that “[w]e absolutely need tort reform in this country”.  The focus of his anti-lawsuit tirade is the possibility of a lawsuit by a photographer who claims he was assaulted by Justin Bieber. O’Reilly writes: [T]he odds are that this is yet another…

Read More Celebrities and Tort Law
Share This:
by

As summer approaches, one’s thoughts naturally turn to summer-y things, like picnics, pools, barbecues, and, maybe, fireworks.  But, as we all know, fireworks (and similar devices) can be dangerous, and their use may result in serious injuries.  Worse, anyone suffering such injuries may be deprived of a legal remedy under a rule recently applied by…

Read More Decision to “Light Up Some Boom Booms” Precludes Recovery in Negligence
Share This:
by

Below is the complaint filed by Evelyn Paswall on March 20th against Apple Inc. According to the suit, Ms. Paswall “walked directly into the clear glass doors at [the store] and fractured her nose.”  The allegations pertaining to Apple’s alleged negligence are largely set forth in paragraphs 18 and 19. [scribd id=86658094 key=key-f4pibatfj6025bu0d57 mode=list]

Read More 83-Year Old Woman Sues Apple After Walking Into Store’s Glass Facade
Share This: