You are here: / / MOTION TO DISMISS PUNITIVE DAMAGES CLAIM PROPERLY DENIED.

MOTION TO DISMISS PUNITIVE DAMAGES CLAIM PROPERLY DENIED.

The Third Department determined the motion to dismiss the demand for punitive damages was properly denied. The action stemmed from an physical confrontation between plaintiff and defendant, an off-duty police officer:

“Punitive damages may be awarded in an action to recover damages for assault” … , but “are permitted only when a defendant purposefully causes, or is grossly indifferent to causing, injury and defendant’s behavior cannot be said to be merely volitional” … . Defendant’s conduct, in other words, must reflect “a high degree of moral culpability, . . . [be] so flagrant as to transcend mere carelessness, or . . . constitute[] willful or wanton negligence or recklessness” … . * * *

… [The] proof permits the finding that defendant pursued plaintiff and angrily confronted him over his perceived deficiencies as a driver, then physically subdued plaintiff and falsely accused him of starting the confrontation to ensure that he would be detained by police. If true, this aggressive and dishonest behavior by an off-duty state trooper is precisely the type of “morally culpable” behavior that defendant and others should be deterred from engaging in … . George v Albert, 2016 NY Slip Op 05613, 3rd Dept 7-21-16

NEGLIGENCE (MOTION TO DISMISS PUNITIVE DAMAGES CLAIM PROPERLY DENIED)/INTENTIONAL TORT (MOTION TO DISMISS PUNITIVE DAMAGES CLAIM PROPERLY DENIED)/ASSAULT (CIVIL ACTION, MOTION TO DISMISS PUNITIVE DAMAGES CLAIM PROPERLY DENIED)/PUNITIVE DAMAGES (MOTION TO DISMISS PUNITIVE DAMAGES CLAIM PROPERLY DENIED)

You might also like
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW, DRIVER’S LICENSES. COMMISSIONER OF MOTOR VEHICLES HAS THE POWER TO DENY RELICENSING TO DRIVER CONVICTED OF DWI WHO HAD TWO SIX POINT SPEEDING TICKETS DURING THE LOOK-BACK PERIOD.
Horse Deemed a “Companion Animal”/Aggravated Cruelty to Animals Conviction Upheld
PLAINTIFF, WHO WAS INTOXICATED AND TRESPASSING, WAS INJURED FALLING THROUGH AN OPENING IN THE FLOOR OF A HOUSE UNDER CONSTRUCTION; THERE WAS A QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER PLAINTIFF’S PRESENCE WAS FORESEEABLE AND PLAINTIFF’S INTOXICATION WAS NOT A SUPERSEDING CAUSE AS A MATTER OF LAW; DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (THIRD DEPT).
FAMILY COURT SHOULD NOT HAVE, SUA SPONTE, TERMINATED MOTHER’S PARENTAL RIGHTS ON MENTAL-ILLNESS GROUNDS IN THE ABSENCE OF THE STATUTORILY-REQUIRED PSYCHOLOGICAL EVALUATION (THIRD DEPT).
PLAINTIFF’S EXPERT AFFIDAVIT IN THIS MEDICAL MALPRACTICE CASE WAS NOT CONCLUSORY OR SPECULATIVE AND RAISED A QUESTION OF FACT SUFFICIENT TO DEFEAT DEFENDANTS’ SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTION (THIRD DEPT).
PRIOR BURGLARY CONVICTION SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ALLOWED AS MOLINEUX AND SANDOVAL EVIDENCE IN THIS ROBBERY PROSECUTION, ERROR HARMLESS HOWEVER (THIRD DEPT).
Question of Fact About Whether ATV Driven with Owner’s Permission Based Upon Owner’s Restrictions on Use of the ATV
COUNTY COURT DID NOT MAKE THE STATUTORY FINDINGS REQUIRED FOR DETERMINING DEFENDANT’S APPLICATION FOR YOUTHFUL OFFENDER STATUS IN THIS SEXUAL OFFENSE CASE, WAIVER OF APPEAL DID NOT PRECLUDE CHALLENGE ON APPEAL, SENTENCE VACATED AND MATTER 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

AUTHORIZATION TO OPEN PETITIONER’S MAIL WAS INVALID. OWNER OF SEASONAL BUSINESS WAS NOT TOTALLY UNEMPLOYED AND THEREFORE WAS NOT...