You are here: / / EVEN IF PLAINTIFF’S STAIRWAY FALL RESULTED FROM A MISSTEP, EVIDENCE...

EVEN IF PLAINTIFF’S STAIRWAY FALL RESULTED FROM A MISSTEP, EVIDENCE THAT PLAINTIFF WAS “LOOKING FOR A HANDRAIL” RAISED A QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER THE ABSENCE OF A HANDRAIL WAS A PROXIMATE CAUSE OF THE FALL (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court in this stairway slip and fall case, determined that plaintiff’s testimony that he was “looking for a handrail” at the time he fell was sufficient to raise a question of fact whether the absence of a handrail was a proximate cause of the fall. Even if a fall is the result of a misstep, the absence of a handrail could be a proximate cause of the fall:

… [E]ven if a plaintiff’s fall is precipitated by a misstep, where the plaintiff testifies that he or she reached out to try to stop his or her fall, the absence of a handrail, if required by law, may raise an issue of fact as to whether the absence of the handrail was a proximate cause of his or her injury” … . In contrast, the absence of a handrail will not create an issue of fact where the plaintiff does not offer testimony demonstrating “that she [or he] reached out for a handrail either before or during her [or his] fall” or otherwise showing that “the lack of handrails contributed to [the] accident” … .

… Although he was not sure what caused him to lose his balance, the injured plaintiff testified that he was “looking for a handrail” before descending the final set of steps but observed that no handrails were available. “Even if the [injured] plaintiff’s fall was precipitated by a misstep,” his testimony indicating that he would have been using a handrail at the time of his accident had one been available was sufficient to create “an issue of fact as to whether the absence of [an accessible] handrail was a proximate cause of h[is] injur[ies]” … . Curto v Kahn Prop. Owner, LLC, 2024 NY Slip Op 01290, Second Dept 3-13-24

Practice Point: In a stairway-fall case, if the plaintiff indicates they reached for a handrail at the time of the fall, that raises a question of fact whether the absence of a handrail was a proximate cause of the fall, even if the fall was due to a misstep.

 

You might also like
BECAUSE DEFENDANT OBJECTED TO THE AMOUNT OF RESTITUTION A HEARING TO DETERMINE THE AMOUNT SHOULD HAVE BEEN HELD (SECOND DEPT).
PLAINTIFF WAS INJURED WHEN A PIECE OF WIRE STRUCK HIS EYE WHEN HE WAS USING A NAIL GUN; PLAINTIFF DID NOT ELIMINATE QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT WHETHER THE WORK HE WAS DOING REQUIRED EYE PROTECTION WITHIN THE MEANING OF THE RELEVANT INDUSTRIAL CODE PROVISION; THEREFORE PLAINTIFF SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN AWARDED SUMMARY JUDGMENT ON THE LABOR LAW 241(6) CAUSE OF ACTION (SECOND DEPT).
ALTHOUGH THE EVIDENCE OF SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY WAS INSUFFICIENT, THE EVIDENCE DEFENDANT INTENDED TO INFLICT SERIOUS PHYSICAL INJURY WAS SUFFICIENT; CONVICTIONS REDUCED TO ATTEMPTED GANG ASSAULT, ASSAULT AND ROBBERY (SECOND DEPT).
INSURER FAILED TO GIVE ADEQUATE NOTICE OF A CHANGE IN THE COVERAGE OF THE UNDERLYING AUTO LIABILITY POLICY REQUIRED BY ITS UMBRELLA POLICY, UMBRELLA POLICY REFORMED TO RESTORE THE RESULTING GAP IN COVERAGE.
THE STANDARD OF PROOF REQUIRED IN AN ENTIRELY CIRCUMSTANTIAL-EVIDENCE CASE WAS NOT MET IN THIS MURDER PROSECUTION; CONVICTION REVERSED AS AGAINST THE WEIGHT OF THE EVIDENCE (SECOND DEPT).
SURGEON, WHO HAD NO MEMORY OF PLAINTIFF’S PROCEDURE, SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO TESTIFY ABOUT HIS USUAL CUSTOM AND PRACTICE IN PERFORMING A HERNIA REPAIR, DEFENSE JUDGMENT REVERSED IN THIS MEDICAL MALPRACTICE ACTION (SECOND DEPT).
PLAINTIFF IN THIS LABOR LAW 240 (1) ACTION WAS INJURED WHEN THE ROOF OF THE BUILDING COLLAPSED, HIS ACTION AGAINST HIS EMPLOYER (A DEMOLITION COMPANY) WAS BARRED BY THE EXCLUSIVITY PROVISIONS OF THE WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER THE COLLAPSE WAS FORESEEABLE IN THE ACTION AGAINST THE BUILDING OWNER, EVIDENCE THAT BEAMS HAD BEEN CUT WAS INADMISSIBLE HEARSAY (SECOND DEPT).
A PHOTOGRAPH DOWNLOADED FROM FACEBOOK ALLEGEDLY SHOWING DEFENDANT WEARING CLOTHES SIMILAR TO THE CLOTHES WORN BY THE PERPETRATOR SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ADMIITTED IN EVIDENCE; THE PHOTOGRAPH WAS NOT AUTHENTICATED; NEW TRIAL ORDERED (SECOND 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 FELL WHEN HER FOOT BECAME ENTANGLED IN CORDS OR TUBES CONNECTED TO... PLAINTIFF AND DEFENDANTS ARE NEIGHBORS; PRIVATE NUISANCE CAUSES OF ACTION BASED...