WATER CAP IN A SIDEWALK WAS A TRIVIAL DEFECT, SLIP AND FALL ACTION PROPERLY DISMISSED (FIRST DEPT).
The First Department determined that a quarter to half inch depression where a water cap was located in a sidewalk was a trivial defect and therefore could not be the basis of a slip and fall action:
… [T]he alleged defect on which plaintiff tripped was trivial and nonactionable as a matter of law based on the characteristics and surrounding circumstances … . The water cap was a quarter to half of an inch below the surface of the sidewalk and the photographic evidence shows no defects in the water cap and surrounding sidewalk. Furthermore, plaintiff never attributed the cause of the accident to any broken or cracked cement or inadequate lighting … . Rivera v City of New York, 2020 NY Slip Op 01698, First Dept 3-12-20