The Second Department determined the county was not entitled to summary judgment in this intersection collision case. Plaintiff alleged her field of vision was blocked by snow piled at the intersection. The county demonstrated it did not have written notice of the condition, but did not demonstrate it did not create the condition:

Where ” a municipality has enacted a prior written notice statute, it may not be subjected to liability for injuries caused by an improperly maintained street . . . unless it has received written notice of the defect, or an exception to the written notice requirement applies'”… . As relevant here, an exception to the prior written notice laws exists where the municipality creates the defective condition through an affirmative act of negligence … . Here, the plaintiff alleged that the County affirmatively caused or contributed to the dangerous condition through its snow plowing operations, which caused snow to be piled unreasonably high at the intersection. Therefore, to establish its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law, the County was required to demonstrate, prima facie, that it did not receive prior written notice of the alleged dangerous condition and that it did not create the alleged dangerous condition … . Although the County demonstrated, prima facie, that it did not receive prior written notice, the County’s submissions failed to demonstrate, prima facie, that its snow removal operations did not create a dangerous condition … . Manzella v County of Suffolk, 2018 NY Slip Op 05296, Second Dept 7-18-18

NEGLIGENCE (TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS, MUNICIPAL LAW, COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT IT DID NOT CREATE THE DANGEROUS CONDITION, I.E. SNOW PILED AT AN INTERSECTION, PLAINTIFF ALLEGED THE INTERSECTION COLLISION WAS CAUSED BY THE INABILITY TO SEE BECAUSE OF THE PILE OF SNOW, COUNTY’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT PROPERLY DENIED (SECOND DEPT))/MUNICIPAL LAW (NEGLIGENCE, TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS, COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT IT DID NOT CREATE THE DANGEROUS CONDITION, I.E. SNOW PILED AT AN INTERSECTION, PLAINTIFF ALLEGED THE INTERSECTION COLLISION WAS CAUSED BY THE INABILITY TO SEE BECAUSE OF THE PILE OF SNOW, COUNTY’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT PROPERLY DENIED (SECOND DEPT))/TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS (NEGLIGENCE, MUNICIPAL LAW,  COUNTY DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT IT DID NOT CREATE THE DANGEROUS CONDITION, I.E. SNOW PILED AT AN INTERSECTION, PLAINTIFF ALLEGED THE INTERSECTION COLLISION WAS CAUSED BY THE INABILITY TO SEE BECAUSE OF THE PILE OF SNOW, COUNTY’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT PROPERLY DENIED (SECOND DEPT))

The Second Department determined defendant property owner did not demonstrate that it did not create or have notice of the dangerous condition in this sidewalk snow and ice slip and fall case. The NYC administrative code imposes a duty on abutting property owners to keep sidewalks safe, but it does not impose strict liability:

Administrative Code of the City of New York § 7-210(a) and (b) imposes a duty upon property owners to maintain the sidewalk adjacent to their property, and shifts tort liability to such owners for the failure to maintain the sidewalk in a reasonably safe condition, including the negligent failure to remove snow and ice … . However, Administrative Code of the City of New York § 7-210 does not impose strict liability upon the property owner, and the injured party has the obligation to prove the elements of negligence to demonstrate that an owner is liable… . Thus, to prevail on its summary judgment motion, the defendant was required to establish that it neither created the alleged hazardous condition nor had actual or constructive notice of its existence for a sufficient length of time to discover and remedy it … .

Here, in support of the motion, the defendant submitted, inter alia, the deposition testimony of its custodian, who had no specific recollection as to when it last snowed prior to the incident, what snow and ice removal efforts he undertook prior to the incident, or what the sidewalk at issue looked like within a reasonable time prior to the incident. The custodian’s deposition testimony, along with the defendant’s other submissions, including its expert evidence, were insufficient to demonstrate, prima facie, that the defendant did not create the alleged ice condition through its snow removal efforts or that it did not have actual or constructive notice of the existence of the condition for a sufficient length of time to discover and remedy it … . Muhammad v St. Rose of Limas R.C. Church, 2018 NY Slip Op 05181, Second Dept 7-11-18

​NEGLIGENCE (SLIP AND FALL, MUNICIPAL LAW, ALTHOUGH THE NYC ADMINISTRATIVE CODE IMPOSES A DUTY TO KEEP SIDEWALKS SAFE ON ABUTTING PROPERTY OWNERS, IT DOES NOT IMPOSE STRICT LIABILITY, DEFENDANT FAILED TO DEMONSTRATE IT DID NOT CREATE OR HAVE NOTICE OF THE ALLEGED DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SIDEWALK ICE AND SNOW SLIP AND FALL CASE, DEFENDANT’S SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTION PROPERLY DENIED (SECOND DEPT))/MUNICIPAL LAW (SLIP AND FALL, SIDEWALKS, ALTHOUGH THE NYC ADMINISTRATIVE CODE IMPOSES A DUTY TO KEEP SIDEWALKS SAFE ON ABUTTING PROPERTY OWNERS, IT DOES NOT IMPOSE STRICT LIABILITY, DEFENDANT FAILED TO DEMONSTRATE IT DID NOT CREATE OR HAVE NOTICE OF THE ALLEGED DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SIDEWALK ICE AND SNOW SLIP AND FALL CASE, DEFENDANT’S SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTION PROPERLY DENIED (SECOND DEPT))/SIDEWALKS (SLIP AND FALL,  ALTHOUGH THE NYC ADMINISTRATIVE CODE IMPOSES A DUTY TO KEEP SIDEWALKS SAFE ON ABUTTING PROPERTY OWNERS, IT DOES NOT IMPOSE STRICT LIABILITY, DEFENDANT FAILED TO DEMONSTRATE IT DID NOT CREATE OR HAVE NOTICE OF THE ALLEGED DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SIDEWALK ICE AND SNOW SLIP AND FALL CASE, DEFENDANT’S SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTION PROPERLY DENIED (SECOND DEPT))/SIDEWALKS (SLIP AND FALL, MUNICIPAL LAW, ALTHOUGH THE NYC ADMINISTRATIVE CODE IMPOSES A DUTY TO KEEP SIDEWALKS SAFE ON ABUTTING PROPERTY OWNERS, IT DOES NOT IMPOSE STRICT LIABILITY, DEFENDANT FAILED TO DEMONSTRATE IT DID NOT CREATE OR HAVE NOTICE OF THE ALLEGED DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SIDEWALK ICE AND SNOW SLIP AND FALL CASE, DEFENDANT’S SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTION PROPERLY DENIED (SECOND DEPT))

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined that the defendant homeowner’s motion for summary judgment in this snow-ice sidewalk slip and fall case should have been granted. Under the NYC Administrative Code the owner of a single-family residential home has no statutory duty to maintain the abutting sidewalk. Although there was evidence defendant removed ice and snow from the sidewalk, there was no showing the snow removal efforts exacerbated or created the dangerous condition:

While there is record evidence that the defendants may have engaged in snow removal efforts prior to the accident, the defendants cannot be held liable for the removal of snow and ice in an incomplete manner … . Since the plaintiff failed to submit evidentiary facts to show that the defendants’ snow removal efforts created or exacerbated an existing hazard, the defendants’ motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint should have been granted. Wise v Filincieri, 2018 NY Slip Op 05074, Second Dept 7-5-18

​NEGLIGENCE (SLIP AND FALL, ALTHOUGH DEFENDANT HOMEOWNER MAY HAVE REMOVED ICE AND SNOW FROM THE SIDEWALK, THERE WAS NO SHOWING THE REMOVAL EFFORTS EXACERBATED OR CREATED THE DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE, HOMEOWNER’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT))/MUNICIPAL LAW (SLIP AND FALL,  ALTHOUGH DEFENDANT HOMEOWNER MAY HAVE REMOVED ICE AND SNOW FROM THE SIDEWALK, THERE WAS NO SHOWING THE REMOVAL EFFORTS EXACERBATED OR CREATED THE DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE, HOMEOWNER’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT))/SLIP AND FALL (ALTHOUGH DEFENDANT HOMEOWNER MAY HAVE REMOVED ICE AND SNOW FROM THE SIDEWALK, THERE WAS NO SHOWING THE REMOVAL EFFORTS EXACERBATED OR CREATED THE DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE, HOMEOWNER’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT))/SIDEWALKS (SLIP AND FALL, ALTHOUGH DEFENDANT HOMEOWNER MAY HAVE REMOVED ICE AND SNOW FROM THE SIDEWALK, THERE WAS NO SHOWING THE REMOVAL EFFORTS EXACERBATED OR CREATED THE DANGEROUS CONDITION IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE, HOMEOWNER’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT))