PLAINTIFF, A PASSENGER IN A STOPPED CAR HIT FROM BEHIND, WAS ENTITLED TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT, WHETHER THE PLAINTIFF’S DRIVER WAS COMPARATIVELY NEGLIGENT NO LONGER PRECLUDES SUMMARY JUDGMENT (SECOND DEPT).
The Second Department determined plaintiff, a passenger in a stopped car struck from behind by a bus, was entitled to summary judgment against the bus defendants. The court noted that whether the car in which plaintiff was a passenger stopped quickly did not preclude summary judgment:
The [bus defendants’] assertion that the vehicle [in which plaintiff was a passenger] was operating made a sudden stop, in and of itself, was insufficient to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether there was a nonnegligent explanation for the collision … . …
… Supreme Court properly searched the record and awarded summary judgment to the plaintiff on the issue of liability against them. The issue of whether the plaintiff contributed to the happening of the accident was before the court… and the evidence showed that the plaintiff was an innocent passenger who did not engage in any culpable conduct that contributed to the happening of the accident… . In any event, to be entitled to summary judgment on the issue of liability, a plaintiff is no longer required to show freedom from comparative fault in establishing his or her prima facie case … . Edgerton v City of New York, 2018 NY Slip Op 02598, Second Dept 4-18-18
NEGLIGENCE (REAR-END COLLISIONS, PLAINTIFF, A PASSENGER IN A STOPPED CAR HIT FROM BEHIND, WAS ENTITLED TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT, WHETHER THE PLAINTIFF’S DRIVER WAS COMPARATIVELY NEGLIGENT NO LONGER PRECLUDES SUMMARY JUDGMENT (SECOND DEPT))/REAR END COLLISIONS (PLAINTIFF, A PASSENGER IN A STOPPED CAR HIT FROM BEHIND, WAS ENTITLED TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT, WHETHER THE PLAINTIFF’S DRIVER WAS COMPARATIVELY NEGLIGENT NO LONGER PRECLUDES SUMMARY JUDGMENT (SECOND DEPT))/TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS (REAR-END COLLISIONS, PLAINTIFF, A PASSENGER IN A STOPPED CAR HIT FROM BEHIND, WAS ENTITLED TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT, WHETHER THE PLAINTIFF’S DRIVER WAS COMPARATIVELY NEGLIGENT NO LONGER PRECLUDES SUMMARY JUDGMENT (SECOND DEPT))/COMPARATIVE NEGLIGENCE (REAR-END COLLISIONS, PLAINTIFF, A PASSENGER IN A STOPPED CAR HIT FROM BEHIND, WAS ENTITLED TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT, WHETHER THE PLAINTIFF’S DRIVER WAS COMPARATIVELY NEGLIGENT NO LONGER PRECLUDES SUMMARY JUDGMENT (SECOND DEPT))/BUSES (REAR-END COLLISIONS, PLAINTIFF, A PASSENGER IN A STOPPED CAR HIT FROM BEHIND, WAS ENTITLED TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT, WHETHER THE PLAINTIFF’S DRIVER WAS COMPARATIVELY NEGLIGENT NO LONGER PRECLUDES SUMMARY JUDGMENT (SECOND DEPT))