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You are here: Home1 / PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT WAS KILLED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT DURING RECREATIONAL...

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/ Immunity, Municipal Law, Negligence, Trespass

PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT WAS KILLED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT DURING RECREATIONAL USE OF A CITY PARKING LOT, CITY NOT LIABLE PURSUANT TO THE GENERAL OBLIGATIONS LAW (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the city could not be held liable for a “trespass activity” motorcycle accident in the parking lot at Yankee Stadium. Trespassers have used the parking for motorcycles, dirt bikes and all-terrain vehicles for recreation for years. Plaintiff’s decedent was killed in a collision in the parking lot. Under the General Obligations Law the city could not be liable unless its conduct was willful or malicious:

The decedent, who trespassed onto a Yankee Stadium parking lot in the off season together with other trespassers who similarly rode motorcycles, dirt bikes and all-terrain vehicles, suffered fatal injuries in a collision with an all-terrain vehicle operated by defendant Pena. The record shows that the nature of the trespass activity involved was commonplace for the parking lot in question, for at least two years, and that drag racing would sometimes be involved. Plaintiff alleged that the City (as lot owner) and Kinney (as lessee) were negligent for not repairing and/or securing the lot’s perimeter fence, and in not employing proper security or supervision to keep trespassers off the premises.

Here, the subject property was physically conducive to the motorcycle activity taking place thereon, and was appropriate for public use in pursuing the activity as recreation (see General Obligations Law § 9-103). As such, the City is immune from liability for any ordinary negligence on its part that may have given rise to the cause of the decedent’s accident, and plaintiff has not otherwise demonstrated that the City’s challenged conduct was willful or malicious as might preclude the City’s reliance on the defense afforded under General Obligations Law § 9-103 … .

Furthermore, although Kinney has not relied upon General Obligation Law § 9-103 as a potential defense to the action against it, the statute’s defense is available to lessees as well as property owners … . Inasmuch as the issue appears on the face of the record, involves no new facts and could not have been avoided if it were timely raised … . Rodriguez v City of New York, 2018 NY Slip Op 03821, First Dept 5-29-18

​NEGLIGENCE (MUNICIPAL LAW, PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT WAS KILLED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT DURING RECREATIONAL USE OF  A CITY PARKING LOT, CITY NOT LIABLE PURSUANT TO THE GENERAL OBLIGATIONS LAW (FIRST DEPT))/MUNICIPAL LAW (NEGLIGENCE, PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT WAS KILLED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT DURING RECREATIONAL USE OF  A CITY PARKING LOT, CITY NOT LIABLE PURSUANT TO THE GENERAL OBLIGATIONS LAW (FIRST DEPT))/IMMUNITY (MUNICIPAL LAW, NEGLIGENCE, PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT WAS KILLED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT DURING RECREATIONAL USE OF  A CITY PARKING LOT, CITY NOT LIABLE PURSUANT TO THE GENERAL OBLIGATIONS LAW (FIRST DEPT))/TRESPASS ACTIVITY (MUNICIPAL LAW, PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT WAS KILLED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT DURING RECREATIONAL USE OF  A CITY PARKING LOT, CITY NOT LIABLE PURSUANT TO THE GENERAL OBLIGATIONS LAW (FIRST DEPT))/GENERAL OBLIGATIONS LAW (MUNICIPAL LAW, IMMUNITY, PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT WAS KILLED IN A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT DURING RECREATIONAL USE OF  A CITY PARKING LOT, CITY NOT LIABLE PURSUANT TO THE GENERAL OBLIGATIONS LAW (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Landlord-Tenant

OUT-OF-POSSESSION LANDLORD WITH RIGHT OF ENTRY TO INSPECT OR REPAIR DID NOT HAVE A DUTY TO REPAIR THE DEFECT AT ISSUE, DEFECT WAS NOT STRUCTURAL AND DID NOT VIOLATE A STATUTORY SAFETY PROVISION (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department determined repair of the type of defect at issue was not the responsibility of the out-of-possession landlord:

Plaintiff seeks damages for injuries he sustained when one of the cellar doors he had opened to take garbage up to the sidewalk from the restaurant where he was employed snapped back and struck him on the back of the head. …

Although defendant Foreign Development Service, Ltd. was an out-of-possession landlord with the right to reenter the leased premises to inspect or repair, the alleged defect in the cellar doors, i.e., rusty hinges and no device, such as a bar, to hold the doors open, was not a structural defect contrary to a specific statutory safety provision … . Cuthbert v Foreign Dev. Serv., Ltd., 2018 NY Slip Op 03812, First Dept 5-29-18

​LANDLORD-TENANT (OUT OF POSSESSION LANDLORD, DUTY TO REPAIR, OUT-OF-POSSESSION LANDLORD WITH RIGHT OF ENTRY TO INSPECT OR REPAIR DID NOT HAVE A DUTY TO REPAIR THE DEFENDANT AT ISSUE, DEFECT WAS NOT STRUCTURAL AND DID NOT VIOLATE A STATUTORY SAFETY PROVISION (FIRST DEPT))/PREMISES LIABILITY (OUT OF POSSESSION LANDLORD, DUTY TO REPAIR, OUT-OF-POSSESSION LANDLORD WITH RIGHT OF ENTRY TO INSPECT OR REPAIR DID NOT HAVE A DUTY TO REPAIR THE DEFENDANT AT ISSUE, DEFECT WAS NOT STRUCTURAL AND DID NOT VIOLATE A STATUTORY SAFETY PROVISION (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Labor Law-Construction Law

QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER DEFENDANT WHICH COULD STOP WORK FOR UNSAFE PRACTICES WAS A STATUTORY AGENT OF THE OWNER OR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER FOR PURPOSES OF LIABILITY UNDER LABOR LAW 240 (1) AND 241 (6) (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, over a dissent, affirmed the denial of summary judgment to plaintiff on his Labor Law 240 (1) and 241 (6) causes of action. The court discussed the concept of a “statutory agent” of an owner or general contractor:

​Labor Law §§ 240(1) and 241(6) impose absolute liability on “contractors and owners and their agents” for worker injuries on construction sites… . CRSG, as site safety consultant, was neither an owner nor general contractor on the project. Thus, whether CRSG is subject to the Labor Law is dependent on whether it was an “agent” of the owners or [construction manager] at the site.

To hold a defendant liable under the Labor Law as a “statutory agent” of either the owner or the general contractor, it must be shown that the defendant had the ” authority to supervise and control'” the injury-producing work … . The determinative factor is whether the defendant had the right to exercise control over the work, not whether it actually exercised that right … . Where the owner or general contractor delegates to a third party the duty to conform to the requirements of the Labor Law, that third party becomes the statutory agent … .

The authority of DeSimone, as an employee of CRSG, to stop work in the event of unsafe practices raises an issue of fact as to whether CRSG is a “statutory agent” for purposes of the Labor Law … . Santos v Condo 124 LLC, 2018 NY Slip Op 03799, First Dept 5-29-18

​LABOR LAW-CONSTRUCTION LAW (QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER DEFENDANT WHICH COULD STOP WORK FOR UNSAFE PRACTICES WAS A STATUTORY AGENT OF THE OWNER OR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER FOR PURPOSES OF LIABILITY UNDER LABOR LAW 240 (1) AND 241 (6) (FIRST DEPT))/STATUTORY AGENT (LABOR LAW-CONSTRUCTION LAW, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER DEFENDANT WHICH COULD STOP WORK FOR UNSAFE PRACTICES WAS A STATUTORY AGENT OF THE OWNER OR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER FOR PURPOSES OF LIABILITY UNDER LABOR LAW 240 (1) AND 241 (6) (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Labor Law-Construction Law

ARBITRATOR’S RULING WAS IRRATIONAL AND VIOLATED CPLR 1209 IN THIS NO-FAULT INSURANCE ACTION, HEALTH CARE PROVIDER, AS AN ASSIGNEE, WAS ENTITLED TO ARBITRATE ITS CLAIM FOR CARE PROVIDED TO THE INJURED INFANT (SECOND DEPT).

The First Department, reversing (modifying) Supreme Court, determined plaintiff’s Labor Law 240 (1) cause of action should have been dismissed. Plaintiff, while carrying a heavy pipe on a ramp, lost his balance and was struck by the pipe:

Plaintiff’s testimony established that he was not exposed to the type of elevation-related hazard contemplated by the statute. The height differential of 6 to 10 inches mediated by the ramp did not constitute a physically significant elevation differential covered by the statute … . Also, as the ramp was serving as a passageway, as opposed to the “functional equivalent” of a safety device enumerated under the statute, it did not fall within the purview of the statute … . Further, the impetus for the pipe’s descent was plaintiff’s loss of balance, rather than the direct consequence of the force of gravity … . Jackson v Hunter Roberts Constr. Group, LLC, 2018 NY Slip Op 03805, First Dept 5-29-18

​LABOR LAW-CONSTRUCTION LAW (PLAINTIFF LOST HIS BALANCE CARRYING A PIPE ON A RAMP, INCIDENT NOT COVERED BY LABOR LAW 240 (1) (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Attorneys, Family Law

COURT SHOULD HAVE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION THE FUTURE EARNING CAPACITY OF THE PARTIES IN CONNECTION WITH MOTHER’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES, MOTHER ENTITLED TO A HEARING (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing Family Court, determined mother was entitled to a hearing on her motion for attorney’s fees in this divorce action (mother sought $174,000). Family Court had dismissed mother’s motion. The First Department held that Family Court should have looked at the future earning capacity of the parties rather than their earning capacity at the time of the decision:

The purpose of awarding counsel fees is to further the objectives of “litigational parity” and prevent a more affluent spouse from considerably wearing down the opposition … . In its dismissal of the mother’s motion for counsel fees, the court unduly relied upon the financial circumstances of the parties at the time it rendered its decision rather than weighing the historical and future earning capacities of both parties … . Here, although the father was unemployed at the time the court’s decision was rendered, and the mother had secured employment, the father earned considerably more than the mother during the course of their relationship and has significantly more expected earning capacity than the mother. Indeed, the financial and tax documents in the record support such a conclusion. The father, however, is entitled to a hearing so that the relative financial positions of the parties and the value and extent of the counsel fees requested can be examined … . Matter of Brookelyn M. v Christopher M., 2018 NY Slip Op 03801, First Dept 5-29-18

​FAMILY LAW (ATTORNEY’S FEES, COURT SHOULD HAVE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION THE FUTURE EARNING CAPACITY OF THE PARTIES IN CONNECTION WITH MOTHER’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES, MOTHER ENTITLED TO A HEARING (FIRST DEPT))/ATTORNEY’S FEE (FAMILY LAW, COURT SHOULD HAVE TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION THE FUTURE EARNING CAPACITY OF THE PARTIES IN CONNECTION WITH MOTHER’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES, MOTHER ENTITLED TO A HEARING (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Civil Procedure, Employment Law, Labor Law, Privilege, Public Health Law

PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department determined plaintiff in this whistleblower action was entitled to discover medical records protected by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Public Health Law (PHL). Plaintiff alleged he was fired, in violation Labor Law 740, in retaliation for complaining that defendant’s employees procured organs without performing tests and from people who still showed signs of life:

The records concerning these four individuals are material and necessary to plaintiff’s claim (see CPLR 3101[a]). To prevail on a claim for retaliatory termination in violation of Labor Law § 740(2), plaintiff must prove that he was fired because he objected to or threatened to disclose a practice that was in violation of a law or regulation … . The subject medical records will allegedly show that defendant pressured doctors to declare people dead in violation of regulations regarding the making of such determinations … .

… [B]ecause the subject disclosure would be made in the course of a judicial proceeding and pursuant to a qualified protective order, it is authorized under HIPAA… .

… PHL § 4351(8) renders defendant’s documents subject to the protections of the physician-patient privilege set forth at CPLR 4504. This privilege is personal to the patient and is not terminated by death … . It has not been expressly or implicitly waived in this case by the donors’ next of kin … . However, plaintiff demonstrated that the information in the medical records is material and necessary to his claim and that “the circumstances warrant overcoming the privilege and permitting discovery of the records with all identifying patient information appropriately redacted to protect patient confidentiality” … . Allowing disclosure under these circumstances is consistent with the public policy underlying the whistleblower statute, i.e., to encourage employees to report hazards to supervisors and the public … . McMahon v New York Organ Donor Network, 2018 NY Slip Op 03820, First Dept 5-29-18

​EMPLOYMENT LAW (PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/LABOR LAW (WHISTLEBLOWERS, PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/PRIVILEGE (MEDICAL RECORDS, PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/CIVIL PROCEDURE (DISCOVERY, MEDICAL RECORDS,  PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/HIPAA (PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (MEDICAL RECORDS, PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/WHISTLEBLOWERS  (PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/DISCOVERY (MEDICAL RECORDS, PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))/ORGAN TRANSPLANTS  (PLAINTIFF IN THIS WHISTLEBLOWER ACTION ENTITLED TO DISCOVER MEDICAL RECORDS WHICH ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT AND THE PUBLIC HEALTH LAW (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Attorneys, Criminal Law

COURT DID NOT CONDUCT SEARCHING INQUIRY INTO DEFENDANT’S REQUEST TO PROCEED PRO SE, CONVICTION REVERSED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing defendant’s conviction, determined that the court’s inquiry into defendant’s request to proceed pro se was inadequate:

The knowing, voluntary, and intelligent waiver of the right to counsel by a defendant who seeks to proceed pro se requires a “searching inquiry” in which the court must communicate to the defendant both the “risks inherent in proceeding pro se” and “the singular importance of the lawyer in the adversarial system of adjudication” … . Neither a defendant’s expression of a strong desire to proceed pro se, nor elicitation of information demonstrating the defendant might be relatively capable of doing so, is a substitute for the two above-cited essential components of a searching inquiry, which were all but completely absent here. The relevant portion of the trial court’s colloquy with defendant on this subject was essentially limited to warning him that self-representation was a “big mistake” and that the court had seen many pro se defendants convicted after trial.

Even when the record is viewed as a whole, the required inquiry does not appear. Defendant had made several requests for self-representation before a calendar court. However, in each instance the court denied the request on the basis of its initial inquiry about defendant’s understanding of the charges, without reaching the stage of the required pro se inquiry at issue on appeal. People v Herbin, 2018 NY Slip Op 03811, First Dept 5-29-18

​CRIMINAL LAW (LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSES, PEOPLE CONCEDED ROBBERY THIRD SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE JURY AS A LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSE, NO NEED FOR A NEW TRIAL, CONVICTION REDUCED (FIRST DEPT))/LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSES (PEOPLE CONCEDED ROBBERY THIRD SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE JURY AS A LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSE, NO NEED FOR A NEW TRIAL, CONVICTION REDUCED (FIRST DEPT))/APPEALS (CRIMINAL LAW, LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSES, PEOPLE CONCEDED ROBBERY THIRD SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE JURY AS A LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSE, NO NEED FOR A NEW TRIAL, CONVICTION REDUCED (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Appeals, Criminal Law

PEOPLE CONCEDED ROBBERY THIRD SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE JURY AS A LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSE, NO NEED FOR A NEW TRIAL, CONVICTION REDUCED (FIRST DEPT). ​

The First Department, reversing (modifying) defendant’s conviction of robbery second, determined Supreme Court should have submitted robbery third to the jury as a lesser included offense. But because the People agreed that the conviction could be reduced to robbery third a new trial was not necessary:

There was a reasonable view of the evidence supporting defendant’s request for submission of third-degree robbery as a lesser included offense, and we have considered and rejected the People’s argument that the issue is unpreserved. The appropriate remedy for this type of error would normally be a new trial. However, the People’s concession that, if we reach this error, the conviction should be reduced to third-degree robbery renders a new trial unnecessary because the modification provides defendant with a greater remedy than he would have received had the trial court submitted that charge to the jury … . People v Cabassa, 2018 NY Slip Op 03810, First Dept 5-29-18

​CRIMINAL LAW (LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSES, PEOPLE CONCEDED ROBBERY THIRD SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE JURY AS A LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSE, NO NEED FOR A NEW TRIAL, CONVICTION REDUCED (FIRST DEPT))/LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSES (PEOPLE CONCEDED ROBBERY THIRD SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE JURY AS A LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSE, NO NEED FOR A NEW TRIAL, CONVICTION REDUCED (FIRST DEPT))/APPEALS (CRIMINAL LAW, LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSES, PEOPLE CONCEDED ROBBERY THIRD SHOULD HAVE BEEN SUBMITTED TO THE JURY AS A LESSER INCLUDED OFFENSE, NO NEED FOR A NEW TRIAL, CONVICTION REDUCED (FIRST DEPT))

May 29, 2018
/ Trusts and Estates

DATE OF WOMAN’S DISAPPEARANCE, NOT THE STATUTORY DEFAULT DATE FIVE YEARS LATER, WAS THE CORRECT DATE OF DEATH (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing Surrogate’s Court, determined the date of the disappearance of Kathleen (January 31, 1982) , not the statutory default date (January 31, 1987) was the date of the Kathleen’s death:

Petitioner submitted evidence that Kathleen disappeared without explanation, and without her car and personal effects, on January 31, 1982. Kathleen has not been seen or heard from since that date. Kathleen’s sisters submit affidavits in which they recite that they were close with her, and communicated with her several times a month, prior to her disappearance. They state that it is inconceivable that Kathleen would abruptly cease all communication with family and friends. Kathleen was also a medical student at Mt. Sinai Medical School at the time of her disappearance. She was two months away from graduation. According to her family it was Kathleen’s dream to become a doctor and it would be incomprehensible that she would walk away from her studies when she was so close to her goal. Respondent … has not submitted an affidavit refuting or explaining this evidence.

We find that this evidence is sufficient to establish a “high[] probab[ility]” that Kathleen died on the date of her disappearance … . Matter of McCormack, 2018 NY Slip Op 03733, First Dept 5-24-18

TRUSTS AND ESTATES (DATE OF WOMAN’S DISAPPEARANCE, NOT THE STATUTORY DEFAULT DATE FIVE YEARS LATER, WAS THE CORRECT DATE OF DEATH (FIRST DEPT))/DISAPPEARANCE (DATE OF WOMAN’S DISAPPEARANCE, NOT THE STATUTORY DEFAULT DATE FIVE YEARS LATER, WAS THE CORRECT DATE OF DEATH (FIRST DEPT))/DEATH, DATE OF  (DATE OF WOMAN’S DISAPPEARANCE, NOT THE STATUTORY DEFAULT DATE FIVE YEARS LATER, WAS THE CORRECT DATE OF DEATH (FIRST DEPT))

May 24, 2018
/ Negligence

QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT THE CAUSE OF PLAINTIFF’S FALL AND DEFENDANT’S CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE PRECLUDED THE AWARD OF SUMMARY JUDGMENT TO THE DEFENDANT IN THIS STAIRWAY SLIP AND FALL CASE (FIRST DEPT). ​

The First Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined an issue of fact whether the defendant property owner had constructive notice of inconsistently worn and slippery steps precluded the award of summary judgment to the defendant. The First Department also found that the cause of the fall was sufficiently identified by plaintiff’s expert opinion, despite the difficulty in discerning the defect from the photographs:

Plaintiff identified the cause of his fall on stairs in a building owned and managed by defendants sufficiently to withstand summary judgment. He was not required to identify at the time of the accident “exactly where [he] fell and the precise condition that caused [him] to fall” … . He identified the location of his fall at his deposition. Plaintiff also explained that it was the “concave” shape of the steps that caused him to slip. This testimony was corroborated by plaintiff’s expert, who opined that the stairs were dangerously slippery and were disproportionately worn in the middle, creating an unsafe “inward sloping condition” … . Plaintiff’s expert’s opinion was properly considered, although it was not timely disclosed, since there was no showing of prejudice to defendants … .

Plaintiff’s evidence of the cause of his fall is also sufficient to raise issues of fact as to the existence of a defective condition. While it is difficult to discern a concave or sloping condition in the photographs in the record, the photographs are not sufficiently clear to be conclusive.

The record also presents issues of fact as to defendants’ notice of the alleged defects. Inconsistently worn and slippery steps are not latent defects and do not appear overnight. In addition, defendants submitted evidence showing that they had an opportunity to observe the defects. The building superintendent informally inspected the stairs at least three times a week during cleaning. Thus, if the defects are found to exist, it will be reasonable to infer that defendants had constructive notice of them … . Johnson v 675 Coster St. Hous. Dev. Fund, 2018 NY Slip Op 03756, First Dept 5-24-18

​NEGLIGENCE (SLIP AND FALL, QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT THE CAUSE OF PLAINTIFF’S FALL AND DEFENDANT’S CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE PRECLUDED THE AWARD OF SUMMARY JUDGMENT TO THE DEFENDANT IN THIS STAIRWAY SLIP AND FALL CASE (FIRST DEPT))/SLIP AND FALL (QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT THE CAUSE OF PLAINTIFF’S FALL AND DEFENDANT’S CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE PRECLUDED THE AWARD OF SUMMARY JUDGMENT TO THE DEFENDANT IN THIS STAIRWAY SLIP AND FALL CASE (FIRST DEPT))/ CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE (SLIP AND FALL, QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT THE CAUSE OF PLAINTIFF’S FALL AND DEFENDANT’S CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE PRECLUDED THE AWARD OF SUMMARY JUDGMENT TO THE DEFENDANT IN THIS STAIRWAY SLIP AND FALL CASE (FIRST DEPT))/STAIRWAY (SLIP AND FALL, QUESTIONS OF FACT ABOUT THE CAUSE OF PLAINTIFF’S FALL AND DEFENDANT’S CONSTRUCTIVE NOTICE PRECLUDED THE AWARD OF SUMMARY JUDGMENT TO THE DEFENDANT IN THIS STAIRWAY SLIP AND FALL CASE (FIRST DEPT))

May 24, 2018
Page 927 of 1774«‹925926927928929›»

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