Evidence

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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 Strong v. City of New York, the Appellate Division, First Department recently held that sanctions were appropriate in light of the NYPD’s deletion of audio recordings preceding a car accident allegedly initiated by an NYPD driver. Plaintiff and others were injured when an NYPD vehicle “collided with a vehicle operated by defendant Geraldo Falcon,…

Read More Deletion of Radio Transmissions Results in Sanctions in NYPD Car Accident Case
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In a recent case, SJS Distribution Systems v. Sam’s Club (decided October 11, 2013), the Eastern District of New York discussed and applied the doctrine of “spoliation” as it relates to discovery in civil litigation. There, plaintiff argued that it “discovered a discrepancy between the packaging of the diapers that it ordered and some of…

Read More Court Imposes Sanctions For Evidence Spoliation in Diaper Case
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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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