Plaintiff Was Unable to Demonstrate Landlord Had Knowledge of Presence of Lead Paint​

Plaintiff’s inability to demonstrate the defendant had actual or constructive notice of the presence of lead paint in defendant’s building, in the face of defendant’s deposition testimony about his lack of knowledge, justified the dismissal of the lead-paint-injury complaint.  The Third Department explained:

“[I]n order for a landlord to be  held liable for injuries resulting from a defective condition upon the premises, the plaintiff must establish that the landlord had actual or constructive notice of the condition for such a period of time that, in the exercise of reasonable care, it should have been corrected” ….To  establish constructive notice in the context of a lead paint case, the plaintiff must show “that the landlord (1) retained a right of entry to the premises and assumed a duty to make repairs, (2) knew that the apartment was constructed at a time before lead-based interior paint was banned,  (3) was aware  that paint was  peeling on  the premises, (4) knew of the hazards of lead-based paint to young children and (5) knew that a young child lived in the apartment” … . Hines v Double D and S Realty Management Corp, 515635, 3rd Dept, 5-2-13