You are here: / / ALTHOUGH THE PERSON WHO ALLEGEDLY ASSAULTED PLAINTIFF AT JFK AIRPORT WAS...
,

ALTHOUGH THE PERSON WHO ALLEGEDLY ASSAULTED PLAINTIFF AT JFK AIRPORT WAS AN EMPLOYEE OF AMERICAN AIRLINES, HE WAS NOT ON DUTY AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT; THE DEFENDANTS MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT ON THE VICARIOUS LIABILITY AND NEGLIGENCE CAUSES OF ACTION SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined defendants’ motion for summary judgment in this vicarious liability, negligent hiring and supervision and premises liability action should have been granted. Plaintiff was allegedly assaulted by Miles, who worked for American Airlines, at JFK airport (owned by defendant Port Authority). Plaintiff sued under respondeat superior and negligence theories. Miles testified he was not on duty at the time of the incident:

Under the doctrine of respondeat superior, an employer may be held vicariously liable for intentional torts committed by employees acting within the scope of their employment, as long as those acts were “generally foreseeable and a natural incident of the employment” … . Where the material facts are not in dispute, the question whether respondeat superior liability attaches is one of law and can be determined on a motion for summary judgment … . Here the threshold question is whether Miles was even working, or under the direction of American, at the time of the incident. … [D]efendants attached the deposition transcript of Miles, who testified that he was not working at the time of the incident. This was sufficient to at least satisfy defendants’ prima facie burden … .

Because the testimony of Miles, who, notably, is not a party to this action, was that he was not on duty when the altercation occurred, defendants shifted the burden on the issue of respondeat superior. Moreover, Miles’s testimony about his job responsibilities — escorting planes in and out, and loading and unloading luggage — established prima facie that the foreseeability element of respondeat superior liability was not present. The alleged assault bore no connection to plaintiff’s work duties, and thus was not “in furtherance of any employer-related goal whatsoever”  Summors v Port Auth. of N.Y. & N.J., 2022 NY Slip Op 01891, First Dept 3-17-22

Practice Point: An American Airlines employee allegedly assaulted plaintiff at JFK airport. The defendants demonstrated the American Airlines employee was not on duty at the time of the incident, which was deemed fatal to respondeat superior (vicarious) liability.

 

You might also like
All Ambiguities Re: Letters of Credit Resolved Against the Issuer—“Independence Principle” Applied—Beneficiaries of Letters of Credit Entitled to Payment
DEFENDANT, WHICH OPERATED A STUDY-ABROAD PROGRAM, OWED A DUTY OF CARE TO INJURED STUDENT; BECAUSE DEFENDANT PRESENTED NO AFFIRMATIVE PROOF ON CAUSATION IN SUPPORT OF ITS SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTION, THE BURDEN OF PROOF ON THAT ISSUE NEVER SHIFTED TO PLAINTIFF.
PLAINTIFF WAS WALKING UP AN EARTHEN RAMP WHEN HE WAS STRUCK BY AN EXCAVATOR AND ROLLED DOWN THE RAMP; THERE WAS NO “SIGNIFICANT ELEVATION DIFFERENTIAL” SUCH THAT LABOR LAW 24O (1) WOULD APPLY (FIRST DEPT).
THE NYC HUMAN RESOURCES ADMINISTRATION (HRA) WAS NOT ENTITLED TO ANY OF THE PROCEEDS OF PLAINTIFF’S CAR-ACCIDENT SETTLEMENT BECAUSE THE SETTLEMENT DID NOT INCLUDE MEDICAL EXPENSES; PLAINTIFF WAS BARRED FROM RECOVERY OF MEDICAL COSTS BECAUSE HER BASIC ECONOMIC LOSS WAS LESS THAN $50,000 (INS LAW 5102) (FIRST DEPT).
JOHN DOE NAMED IN TIMELY COMPLAINT DID NOT REFER TO THE LLC NAMED IN THE COMPLAINT FILED AFTER THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS HAD RUN, MOTION TO DISMISS PROPERLY GRANTED (FIRST DEPT).
FLAWED JURY INSTRUCTIONS ON THE JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE REQUIRED REVERSAL IN THE INTEREST OF JUSTICE.
EVIDENCE THE LADDER SLIPPED OUT FROM UNDER PLAINTIFF WAS SUFFICIENT TO WARRANT SUMMARY JUDGMENT ON THE LABOR LAW 240 (1) CAUSE OF ACTION; PLAINTIFF WAS NOT REQUIRED TO SHOW THE LADDER WAS DEFECTIVE (FIRST DEPT)
PLAINTIFF WAS RAPED IN DEFENDANTS’ BAR/RESTAURANT AND RAISED QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT THE ADEQUACY OF SECURITY AND THE FORESEEABILITY OF THE THIRD-PARTY ASSAULT; DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (FIRST DEPT).

Categories

Sign Up for the Mailing List to Be Notified When the Site Is Updated.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Copyright © 2026 New York Appellate Digest, Inc.
Site by CurlyHost | Privacy Policy

CONFLICTING EVIDENCE ABOUT THE ABILITY TO SEE ICE ON THE PARKING LOT RAISED... DEFENDANT COMMODITY FUTURES BROKER IS ENTITLED TO COVERAGE UNDER FIDELITY BONDS...