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DEFENDANT’S EMPLOYEE WAS NOT ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT WHEN HE ARM-WRESTLED WITH PLAINTIFF; THEREFORE THE EMPLOYER WAS NOT LIABLE FOR THE ALLEGED INJURY TO PLAINTIFF UNDER A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR THEORY (FOURTH DEPT).

The Fourth Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff’s action against the owner of a defendant strip club for injuries incurred when plaintiff was arm-wrestling with defendant’s employee should have been dismissed. Defendant’s employee was not acting within the scope of his employment and defendant therefore could not be liable under a respondeat superior theory:

… [W]e conclude that defendants met their initial burden on the motion by establishing that the employee’s act of arm wrestling plaintiff was not within the scope of his employment and that plaintiff failed to raise a triable issue of fact in response … . The uncontroverted evidence submitted by defendants demonstrated that, although the employee had various responsibilities at the club, he was not required to entertain the club’s patrons, and he arm wrestled plaintiff out of personal motives unrelated to any of his job responsibilities … . Gehrke v Mustang Sally’s Spirits & Grill, Inc., 2020 NY Slip Op 00741, Fourth Dept 1-31-20

 

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AFTER A VALID TRAFFIC STOP BASED ON THE LICENSE PLATES NOT MATCHING THE VEHICLE, DEFENDANT PRESENTED HIS TEMPORARY REGISTRATION AND EXPLAINED THE PLATES HAD BEEN TRANSFERRED FROM A DIFFERENT VEHICLE; AT THAT POINT THE AUTHORIZATION TO DETAIN DEFENDANT CEASED; THE SEIZED DRUGS SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED (FOURTH DEPT). ​
​ THE JUDGE SHOULD NOT HAVE DETERMINED THE TRIAL WITNESS’S IDENTIFICATION OF DEFENDANT WAS CONFIRMATORY FOR THE FIRST TIME AT TRIAL; A MIDTRIAL RODRIGUEZ HEARING SHOULD HAVE BEEN HELD; MATTER REMITTED (FOURTH DEPT).
THE DEFENDANT TESTIFED THE VICTIM WAS ON TOP OF HIM REPEATEDLY STRIKING HIM IN THE HEAD WHEN HE PULLED OUT HIS FIREARM AND SHOT THE VICTIM; EVEN IF DEFENDANT’S VERSION WAS DEEMED UNLIKELY, THE JURY SHOULD HAVE BEEN INSTRUCTED ON THE JUSTIFICATION DEFENSE; NEW TRIAL ORDERED (FOURTH DEPT).
DOCTOR’S CREDENTIALING FILE PRIVILEGED AND NOT DISCOVERABLE, WHETHER CONTENTS OF PERSONNEL FILE ARE PRIVILEGED MUST BE DETERMINED DOCUMENT BY DOCUMENT.
PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS VEHICLE-PEDESTRIAN ACCIDENT CASE SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, PLAINTIFFS NEED NOT SHOW THE ABSENCE OF COMPARATIVE NEGLIGENCE (FOURTH DEPT).
THE JURY SHOULD HAVE BEEN INSTRUCTED TO CONSIDER THE INCLUSORY CONCURRENT COUNT (MURDER SECOND) AND THE TOP COUNT (MURDER FIRST) IN THE ALTERNATIVE; THE ERROR NEED NOT BE PRESERVED FOR APPEAL (FOURTH DEPT).
PLAINTIFF WAS NOT WEARING A HARNESS AND FELL FROM A ROOF; THE FACT THAT HARNESSES MAY HAVE BEEN AVAILABLE DID NOT RAISE A QUESTION OF FACT SUFFICIENT TO DEFEAT PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT ON HIS LABOR LAW 240 (1) CAUSE OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT).

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