Emergency Doctrine

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In Lake v. Holzer (Sup. NY Feb. 9, 2015), a personal injury car accident pedestrian knockdown case, the court held that the “emergency doctrine” was inapplicable and granted plaintiff’s cross-motion for summary judgment. Here are the facts: [P]laintiff Collin Lake, a pedestrian, was standing on the raised median island which separates the north and southbound lanes…

Read More Median Jump to Avoid Fender-Bender Unreasonable; Emergency Doctrine Inapplicable; Pedestrian Awarded Summary Judgment on Liability in Car Accident Case
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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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Last week the New York Court of Appeals issued a decision in Pelletier v. Lahm. In that tragic case, defendant driver Brittany Lahm lost control of her car when she took her hands off the wheel after a passenger untied her bikini top. The jury found in defendant’s favor, after the court instructed it on the…

Read More Court of Appeals Approves of “Emergency Doctrine” Charge in Brittany Lahm “Bikini Crash” Lawsuit
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In Benn v. New York Presbyt. Hosp., a pedestrian knockdown motor vehicle accident personal injury case decided August 6, 2014, the Appellate Division, Second Department denied defendants’ motion for summary judgment. In this case, a 13 year-old student was struck by a city ambulance while in the middle of a crosswalk after exiting a city…

Read More Ambulance-Hit-Pedestrian Lawsuit Continues; “Emergency Vehicle” Recklessness Standard Inapplicable
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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 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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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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