You are here: / / PLAINTIFF COUNTY, ACTING ON BEHALF OF THE NURSING HOME WHERE DECEDENT WAS...
, , ,

PLAINTIFF COUNTY, ACTING ON BEHALF OF THE NURSING HOME WHERE DECEDENT WAS CARED FOR, WAS ENTITLED TO DISCLOSURE OF DECEDENT’S TAX RETURNS; THE RETURNS ARE RELEVANT TO WHETHER DECEDENT’S SON BREACHED THE “RESPONSIBLE PARTY AGREEMENT” WHICH REQUIRED HIM TO USE THE DECEDENT’S INCOME TO PAY THE NURSING HOME (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, reversing (modifying) Supreme Court, plaintiff county (on behalf of the nursing home where decedent was cared for) was entitled to disclosure of decedent’s tax returns in this action against decedent’s son. The action alleged the son breached the “responsible party agreement” in which the son agreed to pay the decedent’s nursing home costs from the decedent’s income and resources:

Unlike a typical action where the assets of a defendant are irrelevant unless and until a judgment is obtained, here … the existence and value of decedent’s assets are critical to the issue of whether Jeffrey Garry [decedent’s son] breached the agreement by failing to use such assets to pay for decedent’s care … . …

Although “tax returns are generally not discoverable unless the party seeking them shows that they are relevant to issues in the case, indispensable to the claim and unavailable from other sources” … , we are satisfied that plaintiff made the requisite showing here, particularly given defendants’ reluctance to produce responsive documents or interrogatory responses that may have otherwise provided information contained in decedent’s tax returns … . County of Warren v Swan, 2022 NY Slip Op 02169, Third Dept 3-31-22

Practice Point: Although tax returns are generally not discoverable until a judgment is obtained, here the decedent’s returns were deemed relevant to whether decedent’s son breached the “responsible party agreement” with the nursing home which cared for decedent. The agreement required decedent’s son to pay the nursing home from decedent’s income and resources.

 

You might also like
PLAINTIFF WAS NOT ALTERING OR ERECTING A STRUCTURE WITHIN THE MEANING OF LABOR LAW 240 (1), DEFENDANT PROPERTY OWNER DID NOT EXERCISE SUPERVISORY CONTROL OVER THE METHOD OR MANNER OF PLAINTIFF’S WORK, PLAINTIFF’S LABOR LAW 240 (1) AND 200 CAUSES OF ACTION PROPERLY DISMISSED (THIRD DEPT).
THE BREACH OF THE IMPLIED COVENANT OF GOOD FAITH SHOULD HAVE BEEN DISMISSED AS DUPLICATIVE OF THE BREACH OF CONTRACT CAUSE OF ACTION (THIRD DEPT).
ALTHOUGH THE DETERMINATION THE INMATE CURSED AT AND THREATENED A CORRECTION OFFICER WAS CONFIRMED, THE CONCURRENCE NOTED THE OFFICER WAS NOT WEARING A BODY CAMERA, DESPITE THE PILOT PROGRAM IMPLEMENTED IN 2018 (THIRD DEPT).
THERE IS A QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER DECEDENT’S STATE UNIVERSITY OWED DECEDENT A DUTY TO WARN HIM OF THE HOSTILITY HARBORED BY ANOTHER STUDENT WHO ULTIMATELY MURDERED DECEDENT (THIRD DEPT).
Audit Procedures, Disclosure of Which Could Impede Investigations, Are Exempt from Disclosure
Four-Month Statute of Limitations Starts Running When Administrative Agency’s Policy Change Is “Readily Ascertainable,” Not When Notice of the Policy Change Is Actually Received
Claimant Did Not Link Illness Caused by Ingestion of a Ubiquitous Mold to Workplace
FAMILY COURT’S RULING THAT A MASSACHUSETTS COURT WAS THE MORE CONVENIENT FORUM FOR THIS CUSTODY MATTER WAS NOT SUPPORTED BY EXPLICIT REFERENCE TO THE STATUTORY FACTORS OR ANY TESTIMONY OR SUBMISSIONS BY THE PARTIES; THE RECORD WAS THEREFORE INSUFFICIENT FOR APPELLATE REVIEW AND THE MATTER WAS REMITTED (THIRD 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

PLAINTIFF SLIPPED AND FELL ON A PLASTIC SHEET PLACED OVER AN ESCALATOR TO PROTECT... PLAINTIFF AGREED TO PROVIDE POURED, NOT PUMPED, CONCRETE AND SPECIFICALLY EXCLUDED...