Employment Law – Page 48 – New York Appellate Digest

DEFENDANT COUNTY CORONER TOOK PLAINTIFF’S SON’S BRAIN MATTER FOR USE IN TRAINING CADAVER DOGS AND FATHER SUED, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER COUNTY OBLIGATED UNDER THE PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW TO DEFEND AND INDEMNIFY THE CORONER (I.E., WAS THE CORONER ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT?) (FOURTH DEPT).

The Fourth Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined defendant’s motion for summary judgment on his cross claim against the county (seeking a determination that the county is obligated to defend and indemnify him) should not have been granted. Plaintiff’s son was killed in a car accident. Defendant, who was then a county coroner, without permission, took plaintiff’s son’s brain matter for use in training cadaver dogs. There was a question of fact whether the county was obligated to defend the coroner pursuant to the Public Officers Law, which applies to actions within the scope of employment:

A county’s duty to defend an employee “turns on whether [the employee was] acting within the scope of [his or her] employment,” and whether the obligation to defend the employee “was formally adopted by a local governing body” … . In order to establish its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law under Public Officers Law § 18, it was incumbent on defendant to establish the applicability of that section … . Here, the court erred in granting summary judgment to defendant while still finding that there are issues of fact that bear on the applicability of Public Officers Law § 18 to defendant’s claims … . Dunn v County of Niagara, 2018 NY Slip Op 03271, Fourth Dept 5-4-18

MUNICIPAL LAW (PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW, DEFENDANT COUNTY CORONER TOOK PLAINTIFF’S SON’S BRAIN MATTER FOR USE IN TRAINING CADAVER DOGS, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER COUNTY OBLIGATED UNDER THE PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW TO DEFEND AND INDEMNIFY THE CORONER (I.E., WAS THE CORONER ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT?) (FOURTH DEPT))/EMPLOYMENT LAW (MUNICIPAL LAW, PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW, DEFENDANT COUNTY CORONER TOOK PLAINTIFF’S SON’S BRAIN MATTER FOR USE IN TRAINING CADAVER DOGS, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER COUNTY OBLIGATED UNDER THE PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW TO DEFEND AND INDEMNIFY THE CORONER (I.E., WAS THE CORONER ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT?) (FOURTH DEPT))/PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW (DEFEND AND INDEMNIFY, DEFENDANT COUNTY CORONER TOOK PLAINTIFF’S SON’S BRAIN MATTER FOR USE IN TRAINING CADAVER DOGS, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER COUNTY OBLIGATED UNDER THE PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW TO DEFEND AND INDEMNIFY THE CORONER (I.E., WAS THE CORONER ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT?) (FOURTH DEPT))

May 4, 2018

Civil Procedure, Education-School Law, Employment Law

PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND HER COMPLAINT BY ADDING A BATTERY CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST A TEACHER AND A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE APPLIED TO THE NEW CAUSES OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT).

The Fourth Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff’s motion to amend her complaint to add a battery cause of action against a teacher and a respondeat superior cause of action against the school should have been granted. Plaintiff alleged the defendant teacher struck her on the back of her head. The complaint alleged a negligence cause of action. Prior to trial plaintiff moved to amend the complaint to add the battery and respondeat superior causes of action. The motion was denied. The case went to trial and the jury rendered a defense verdict. Plaintiff will get a new trial on the two causes of action in the amended complaint:

It is well settled that, “[i]n the absence of prejudice or surprise, leave to amend a pleading should be freely granted” … . Plaintiff established that the relation-back doctrine applied for statute of limitations purposes with respect to the battery cause of action, which was based on the same facts and occurrence as the negligence cause of action and thus related back to the original complaint (see CPLR 203 [f]…). In opposition to the cross motion, defendants failed to establish that they would be prejudiced by plaintiff’s delay in seeking leave to amend the complaint … , inasmuch as the new causes of action were based upon the same facts as the negligence cause of action in the original complaint … .

Defendants argued in opposition to the cross motion that plaintiff failed to proffer any excuse for her delay in seeking leave to amend the complaint, but ” [m]ere lateness is not a barrier to the amendment. It must be lateness coupled with significant prejudice to the other side’ ” … . Therefore, although plaintiff provided no excuse for her delay in seeking leave to amend, that is of no moment because, as noted above, defendants have not shown that they were prejudiced by the delay … . Wojtalewski v Central Sq. Cent. Sch. Dist., 2018 NY Slip Op 03275, Fourth Dept 5-4-18

EDUCATION-SCHOOL LAW (CIVIL PROCEDURE, PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND HER COMPLAINT BY ADDING A BATTERY CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST A TEACHER AND A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE APPLIED TO THE NEW CAUSES OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT))/EMPLOYMENT LAW (EDUCATION-SCHOOL LAW, CIVIL PROCEDURE, PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND HER COMPLAINT BY ADDING A BATTERY CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST A TEACHER AND A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE APPLIED TO THE NEW CAUSES OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT))/CIVIL PROCEDURE (AMEND COMPLAINT, PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND HER COMPLAINT BY ADDING A BATTERY CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST A TEACHER AND A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE APPLIED TO THE NEW CAUSES OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT))/COMPLAINTS (AMENDMENT, PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND HER COMPLAINT BY ADDING A BATTERY CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST A TEACHER AND A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE APPLIED TO THE NEW CAUSES OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT))/RELATION BACK DOCTRINE (AMENDMENT OF COMPLAINT, PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND HER COMPLAINT BY ADDING A BATTERY CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST A TEACHER AND A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE APPLIED TO THE NEW CAUSES OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT))/CPLR 203 (AMENDMENT OF COMPLAINT, RELATION-BACK, PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO AMEND HER COMPLAINT BY ADDING A BATTERY CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST A TEACHER AND A RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THE SCHOOL SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED, CRITERIA EXPLAINED, RELATION-BACK DOCTRINE APPLIED TO THE NEW CAUSES OF ACTION (FOURTH DEPT))

May 4, 2018

Corporation Law, Employment Law, Intellectual Property, Trade Secrets, Unfair Competition

IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP).

The Court of Appeals, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Feinman, over an extensive three-judge dissenting opinion, determined that the “cost avoidance” measure of damages should not be applied in this misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition and unjust enrichment action. Plaintiff proved at trial that former employees defected to defendant rival company, bringing trade secrets with them. Plaintiff’s only proof of damages was its expert’s opinion about how much it would have cost the rival company to develop the product without the misappropriated trade secrets (“avoided costs”):

… [T]he measure of damages in a trade secret action must be designed, as nearly as possible, to restore the plaintiff to the position it would have been in but for the infringement. Whether those losses are measured by the defendant’s profits, revenues, cost savings or any other measure of unjust gain, there is “no presumption of law or of fact” that such a figure will adequately approximate the losses incurred by the plaintiff … . A plaintiff therefore may not elect to measure its damages by the defendant’s avoided costs in lieu of its own losses. * * *

… [D]amages in trade secret actions must be measured by the losses incurred by the plaintiff, and … damages may not be based on the infringer’s avoided development costs. * * *

… .[W]here a defendant saves, through its unlawful activities, costs and expenses that otherwise would have been payable to third parties, those avoided third-party payments do not constitute funds held by the defendant “at the expense of” the plaintiff. Therefore, a plaintiff bringing an unjust enrichment action may not recover as compensatory damages the costs that the defendant avoided due to its unlawful activity in lieu of the plaintiff’s own losses. E.J. Brooks Co. v Cambridge Sec. Seals, 2018 NY Slip Op 03171, CtApp 5-3-18

CORPORATION LAW (MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT, IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP))/TRADE SECRETS (MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT, IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP))/UNFAIR COMPETITION (MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT, IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP))/UNJUST ENRICHMENT (MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT, IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP))/DAMAGES (AVOIDED COSTS, (MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT, IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP))/AVOIDED COSTS (DAMAGES, MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT, IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP))/INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT, IN THIS MISAPPROPRIATION OF TRADE SECRETS, UNFAIR COMPETITION, UNJUST ENRICHMENT ACTION, DAMAGES CANNOT BE MEASURED BY THE DEVELOPMENT COSTS AVOIDED BY THE COMPANY WHICH MISAPPROPRIATED THE TRADE SECRETS (CT APP))

May 3, 2018

Attorneys, Contract Law, Employment Law

LIQUIDATED DAMAGES CLAUSE IN NON-COMPETE COVENANT ENFORCEABLE, ATTORNEY’S FEES NOT ENCOMPASSED BY THE LIQUIDATED DAMAGES (FOURTH DEPT).

The Fourth Department determined the liquidated damages provision in the non-compete covenant was enforceable and the defendant should have been granted summary judgment on its claim for attorney’s fees pursuant to the employment contract. Plaintiffs had argued the liquidated damages encompassed the defendant’s attorneys’ fees:

… [W]e conclude that the court properly determined that defendant met its initial burden of establishing that the liquidated damages clauses are enforceable because they represent a ” reasonable measure of the anticipated probable harm’ ” … , and plaintiffs failed to raise an issue of fact. We note that plaintiffs do not dispute that the potential damages flowing from a breach of the restrictive covenant were not readily ascertainable at the time the parties entered into the employment agreements … . Indeed, the fact that these types of damages are difficult to measure provides the foundation for a liquidated damages clause … .

… [T]he attorney fee clause of the employment agreement is not duplicative of the liquidated damages clause. One of the express purposes of the liquidated damages clause is “avoiding the costs, expenses, and uncertainties of litigation over the amount of actual damages that will be suffered by the Employer in the event of breach” … . Here, defendant seeks attorney’s fees and costs incurred in enforcing the restrictive covenant and the liquidated damages clause, which is distinct from any attorney’s fees and costs that would be incurred in litigation over the amount of actual damages … . Mathew v Slocum-Dickson Med. Group, PLLC, 2018 NY Slip Op 03059, Fourth Dept 4-27-18

EMPLOYMENT LAW (NON-COMPETE COVENANT, LIQUIDATED DAMAGES CLAUSE IN NON-COMPETE COVENANT ENFORCEABLE, ATTORNEY’S FEES NOT ENCOMPASSED BY THE LIQUIDATED DAMAGES (FOURTH DEPT))/CONTRACT LAW (EMPLOYMENT LAW, NON-COMPETE COVENANT, LIQUIDATED DAMAGES CLAUSE IN NON-COMPETE COVENANT ENFORCEABLE, ATTORNEY’S FEES NOT ENCOMPASSED BY THE LIQUIDATED DAMAGES (FOURTH DEPT))/NON-COMPETE COVENANT (LIQUIDATED DAMAGES CLAUSE IN NON-COMPETE COVENANT ENFORCEABLE, ATTORNEY’S FEES NOT ENCOMPASSED BY THE LIQUIDATED DAMAGES (FOURTH DEPT))/ATTORNEY’S FEES (EMPLOYMENT LAW , NON-COMPETE COVENANT, LIQUIDATED DAMAGES CLAUSE IN NON-COMPETE COVENANT ENFORCEABLE, ATTORNEY’S FEES NOT ENCOMPASSED BY THE LIQUIDATED DAMAGES (FOURTH DEPT))/LIQUIDATED DAMAGES (NON-COMPETE COVENANT, LIQUIDATED DAMAGES CLAUSE IN NON-COMPETE COVENANT ENFORCEABLE, ATTORNEY’S FEES NOT ENCOMPASSED BY THE LIQUIDATED DAMAGES (FOURTH DEPT))

April 27, 2018

Employment Law, Labor Law-Construction Law

QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER PLAINTIFF WAS ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT WHEN HE CLIMBED THE LADDER FROM WHICH HE FELL, THUS PLACING THE INCIDENT OUTSIDE THE PROTECTION OF LABOR LAW 240 (1) (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department determined that there was a question of fact whether plaintiff was acting within the scope of his employment when he climbed a ladder to troubleshoot a cable installation problem:

Plaintiff commenced this action to recover for personal injuries he allegedly sustained when he fell from a utility pole while attempting to troubleshoot a cable installation activation that did not work. However, his supervisor submitted an affidavit asserting, inter alia, that plaintiff’s sole job functions were as a manager, providing administrative services and training, assessing materials and equipment needed for a job, and occasionally following up with an activation from ground level only, but that in no event were his duties to entail climbing any poles.

Supreme Court correctly determined that issues of fact exist as to whether the aerial work plaintiff contends he was performing when he fell was outside the scope of his employment and thus outside the protection of Labor Law § 240(1) … . McCue v Cablevision Sys. Corp., 2018 NY Slip Op 02902, First Dept 4-26-18

LABOR LAW-CONSTRUCTION LAW (SCOPE OF EMPLOYMENT, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER PLAINTIFF WAS ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT WHEN HE CLIMBED THE LADDER FROM WHICH HE FELL, THUS PLACING THE INCIDENT OUTSIDE THE PROTECTION OF LABOR LAW 240 (1) (FIRST DEPT))/EMPLOYMENT LAW (LABOR LAW-CONSTRUCTION LAW, QUESTION OF FACT WHETHER PLAINTIFF WAS ACTING WITHIN THE SCOPE OF HIS EMPLOYMENT WHEN HE CLIMBED THE LADDER FROM WHICH HE FELL, THUS PLACING THE INCIDENT OUTSIDE THE PROTECTION OF LABOR LAW 240 (1) (FIRST DEPT))

April 26, 2018

Employment Law, Municipal Law, Negligence, Workers' Compensation

COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT A TOWN POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS INJURED UNDERGOING A PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST AS A CANDIDATE FOR A COUNTY SWAT TEAM WAS A SPECIAL EMPLOYEE OF THE COUNTY SUCH THAT THE POLICE OFFICER’S ONLY REMEDY WAS WORKERS’ COMPENSATION (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the county’s motion for summary judgment should not have been granted in this personal injury action. The plaintiff is a police officer employed by a town. He was a candidate for a position in a county counter-terrorism outfit (REACT). During a fitness test for the county plaintiff was injured (suffered heat stroke). The county moved for summary judgment arguing, inter alia, plaintiff was their special employee and therefore his only remedy was workers’ compensation:

The determination as to whether a special employment relationship exists is generally an issue of fact requiring consideration of many factors, including who controls and directs the manner of the employee’s work, who is responsible for payment of wages and benefits, who furnishes equipment, who has the right to discharge the employee, and whether the work being performed was in furtherance of the special employer’s or the general employer’s business … . General employment is presumed to continue, and the presumption can only be rebutted by a “clear demonstration of surrender of control by the general employer and assumption of control by the special employer” … .

Here, the County defendants failed to meet their initial burden of submitting sufficient evidence demonstrating the absence of any triable issues of fact … . They did not submit sufficient evidence to rebut the presumption that [plaintiff] remained a general employee under the control of the Town at the time of the incident. [Plaintiff] was under the control of the County defendants for the limited purpose of the physical test to evaluate his ability to join REACT. However, his general employer, the Town, paid his wages, gave him permission to attend the REACT test on his regular work day, paid his workers’ compensation benefits, and retained the authority to discharge or discipline him. Dube v County of Rockland, 2018 NY Slip Op 02597, Second Dept 4-18-18

EMPLOYMENT LAW (COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT A TOWN POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS INJURED UNDERGOING A PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST AS A CANDIDATE FOR A COUNTY SWAT TEAM WAS A SPECIAL EMPLOYEE OF THE COUNTY SUCH THAT THE POLICE OFFICER’S ONLY REMEDY WAS WORKERS’ COMPENSATION (SECOND DEPT))/NEGLIGENCE (EMPLOYMENT LAW, COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT A TOWN POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS INJURED UNDERGOING A PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST AS A CANDIDATE FOR A COUNTY SWAT TEAM WAS A SPECIAL EMPLOYEE OF THE COUNTY SUCH THAT THE POLICE OFFICER’S ONLY REMEDY WAS WORKERS’ COMPENSATION (SECOND DEPT))/MUNICIPAL LAW (NEGLIGENCE, COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT A TOWN POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS INJURED UNDERGOING A PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST AS A CANDIDATE FOR A COUNTY SWAT TEAM WAS A SPECIAL EMPLOYEE OF THE COUNTY SUCH THAT THE POLICE OFFICER’S ONLY REMEDY WAS WORKERS’ COMPENSATION (SECOND DEPT))/WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW (NEGLIGENCE, MUNICIPAL LAW, COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT A TOWN POLICE OFFICER WHO WAS INJURED UNDERGOING A PHYSICAL FITNESS TEST AS A CANDIDATE FOR A COUNTY SWAT TEAM WAS A SPECIAL EMPLOYEE OF THE COUNTY SUCH THAT THE POLICE OFFICER’S ONLY REMEDY WAS WORKERS’ COMPENSATION (SECOND DEPT))

April 18, 2018

Employment Law, Negligence

MAINTENANCE WORKER’S BACK INJURY FROM CARRYING A HEAVY BAG OF GARBAGE WAS CAUSED BY A RISK INHERENT IN THE WORK, DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff maintenance worker’s back injury, caused by picking up a heavy bag of garbage, was not actionable because the injury was from a risk inherent in the work:

The defendant [lessee] established its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law dismissing the complaint by submitting evidence demonstrating that the subject garbage bag was not over a weight accepted or contractually agreed upon by the defendant and the plaintiff’s employer at the time of the alleged incident, and that the plaintiff’s injury resulted from a risk inherent in his assigned work as a maintenance worker … . Moody v Kelly Drye & Warren, LLP, 2018 NY Slip Op 02454, Second Dept 4-11-18

NEGLIGENCE (MAINTENANCE WORKER’S BACK INJURY FROM CARRYING A HEAVY BAG OF GARBAGE WAS CAUSED BY A RISK INHERENT IN THE WORK, DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT))/EMPLOYMENT LAW (NEGLIGENCE, PERSONAL INJURY, MAINTENANCE WORKER’S BACK INJURY FROM CARRYING A HEAVY BAG OF GARBAGE WAS CAUSED BY A RISK INHERENT IN THE WORK, DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT))

April 11, 2018

Employment Law, Labor Law, Municipal Law

FIREFIGHTER’S DEATH DURING A TRAINING EXERCISE NOT ACTIONABLE UNDER GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW 205-a AND LABOR LAW 27-a (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department determined plaintiff probationary firefighter’s death from dehydration during fire department training (functional skills training or FST) was not the type of occupational injury which is actionable under General Municipal Law 205-a and Labor Law 27-a:

Decedent … , a probationary firefighter, passed away due to dehydration while performing the Fire Academy’s physically demanding Functional Skills Training (FST) exercise course, which was designed to simulate actual firefighting tasks under a controlled environment.

Plaintiff is not entitled to recover under GML § 205-a, as the injuries decedent sustained were not the type of occupational injury that Labor Law § 27-a was designed to protect, but rather, arose from risks unique to firefighting work … . While the performance of the FST course was part of training, and not part of firefighting per se, the ability to perform it efficiently was a necessary and important part of the job, as it ensures that a firefighter could effectively perform the tasks during an actual fire. The risks of dehydration and other physiological conditions experienced during FST training are the same as those inherent in actual firefighting. Given the special dangers firefighters face, and their responsibility to protect the public, judgments as to how they should be trained are better left for the FDNY supervisors and not second-guessed by the Department of Labor. Sears v City of New York, 2018 NY Slip Op 02430, First Dept 4-10-18

MUNICIPAL LAW (FIREFIGHTER’S DEATH DURING A TRAINING EXERCISE NOT ACTIONABLE UNDER GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW 205-a AND LABOR LAW 27-a (FIRST DEPT))/LABOR LAW (FIREFIGHTER’S DEATH DURING A TRAINING EXERCISE NOT ACTIONABLE UNDER GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW 205-a AND LABOR LAW 27-a (FIRST DEPT))/EMPLOYMENT LAW (MUNICIPAL LAW, LABOR LAW, FIREFIGHTER’S DEATH DURING A TRAINING EXERCISE NOT ACTIONABLE UNDER GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW 205-a AND LABOR LAW 27-a (FIRST DEPT))/LABOR LAW (FIREFIGHTER’S DEATH DURING A TRAINING EXERCISE NOT ACTIONABLE UNDER GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW 205-a AND LABOR LAW 27-a (FIRST DEPT))/FIREFIGHTERS (MUNICIPAL LAW, LABOR LAW, EMPLOYMENT LAW , FIREFIGHTER’S DEATH DURING A TRAINING EXERCISE NOT ACTIONABLE UNDER GENERAL MUNICIPAL LAW 205-a AND LABOR LAW 27-a (FIRST DEPT))

April 10, 2018

Arbitration, Employment Law

ARBITRATOR’S DETERMINATION THAT THE ACKNOWLEDGED SEXUAL HARASSMENT DID NOT RISE TO THE LEVEL OF A DISCHARGEABLE OFFENSE VIOLATED PUBLIC POLICY AND WAS IRRATIONAL (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, in a full-fledged opinion by Justice Manzanet-Daniels, reversing Supreme Court, determined the arbitrator’s ruling in this sexual harassment action violated public policy and was irrational. The arbitrator agreed with the findings of fact made by the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) investigation (which supported the sexual harassment allegations made by Melendez against Aiken) but determined the behavior did not rise to the level of a dischargeable offense:

The arbitrator’s decision fashions a remedy that violates public policy. Moreover, it contains language maligning victims in an entirely inappropriate manner, including statements that it was incumbent on Melendez to take appropriate action if she felt Aiken’s comments were inappropriate. Such a “blame the victim” mentality inappropriately shifts the burden of addressing a hostile work environment onto the employee. The arbitrator’s decision belies the realities of workplace sexual harassment. The fact that the victim did not earlier report Aiken’s behavior is not atypical and should in no way be construed as absolving Aiken of his misconduct.

The arbitrator’s decision effectively prevents petitioners from following their policies and fulfilling their legal obligations to protect against workplace sexual harassment. It is the employer’s responsibility to implement appropriate policies to protect against workplace harassment, including the institution of appropriate complaint procedures that encourage victims to come forward, and the implementation of appropriate sanctions that are designed to deter offensive behavior. …

Accordingly, public policy prohibits enforcement of the arbitration award in this case … . …

Further, the arbitrator’s decision is irrational as it purports to adopt the findings of the EEO in all respects, and yet arrives at the unsustainable conclusion that Aiken did not violate the workplace sexual harassment policy … . Matter of New York City Tr. Auth. v Phillips, 2018 NY Slip Op 02442, First Dept 4-10-18

EMPLOYMENT LAW (SEXUAL HARASSMENT, ARBITRATION, ARBITRATOR’S DETERMINATION THAT THE ACKNOWLEDGED SEXUAL HARASSMENT DID NOT RISE TO THE LEVEL OF A DISCHARGEABLE OFFENSE VIOLATED PUBLIC POLICY AND WAS IRRATIONAL (FIRST DEPT))/ARBITRATION (EMPLOYMENT LAW, SEXUAL HARASSMENT, ARBITRATOR’S DETERMINATION THAT THE ACKNOWLEDGED SEXUAL HARASSMENT DID NOT RISE TO THE LEVEL OF A DISCHARGEABLE OFFENSE VIOLATED PUBLIC POLICY AND WAS IRRATIONAL (FIRST DEPT))/SEXUAL HARASSMENT (EMPLOYMENT LAW, SEXUAL HARASSMENT, ARBITRATOR’S DETERMINATION THAT THE ACKNOWLEDGED SEXUAL HARASSMENT DID NOT RISE TO THE LEVEL OF A DISCHARGEABLE OFFENSE VIOLATED PUBLIC POLICY AND WAS IRRATIONAL (FIRST DEPT))/DISCRIMINATION (EMPLOYMENT LAW, SEXUAL HARASSMENT, ARBITRATOR’S DETERMINATION THAT THE ACKNOWLEDGED SEXUAL HARASSMENT DID NOT RISE TO THE LEVEL OF A DISCHARGEABLE OFFENSE VIOLATED PUBLIC POLICY AND WAS IRRATIONAL (FIRST DEPT))

April 10, 2018

Civil Procedure, Employment Law, Negligence

ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT).

The Third Department, reversing (modifying) Supreme Court, determined plaintiff was not entitled to discover the reports of other accidents involving defendant bus driver. Plaintiff’s children were injured after getting off the bus. Both the driver (Morin) and his employer (CDTA) were sued. Although the bill of particulars mentioned negligent hiring and retention, the complaint did not. Therefore there were no grounds for the discovery of the reports of prior accidents:

The allegations of negligence set forth in the complaint, as they relate to Morin and CDTA, pertain solely to Morin’s operation of the bus on the day of the incident … . Specifically, the complaint alleges that, after discharging the infant passengers, Morin “negligently remained in that position for a considerable period of time, causing the bus to obstruct the path of travel for other vehicles in violation of the Vehicle and Traffic Law[].” It further alleges that Morin was “negligent, careless and reckless” in failing to illuminate his hazard lights or any other signal to alert drivers of the presence of the bus during that time. Critically absent from the complaint is any allegation of direct negligence on the part of CDTA. Thus, the complaint “gives not the slightest indication of a theory of liability of negligent supervision[, hiring or retention]”… . Although plaintiff alleged a theory of negligent hiring and retention in his bill of particulars, “[i]t is well settled that a bill of particulars is intended to amplify the pleadings, limit the proof, and prevent surprise at trial . . . [, and it] may not be used to allege a new theory not originally asserted in the complaint” … . Schonbrun v DeLuke, 2018 NY Slip Op 02386, Third Dept 4-5-18

NEGLIGENCE (ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/BUSES (ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS (BUSES, ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT)/CIVIL PROCEDURE (COMPLAINTS, ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/COMPLAINTS (ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/BILL OF PARTICULARS (ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/DISCOVERY (ACCIDENT REPORTS, ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/ACCIDENT REPORTS (NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION, ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/EMPLOYMENT LAW (NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION, ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))/NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION (ACCIDENT REPORTS, DISCOVERY , ALTHOUGH THE BILL OF PARTICULARS MENTIONED NEGLIGENT HIRING AND RETENTION IN THIS BUS-PASSENGER-INJURY CASE, THE COMPLAINT DID NOT, THEREFORE THERE WERE NO GROUNDS FOR THE DEMAND TO DISCOVER REPORTS OF PREVIOUS ACCIDENTS INVOLVING THE BUS DRIVER (THIRD DEPT))

April 5, 2018