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Allegation in Notice of Claim that Defendant Failed to Maintain a Stairway Was Sufficient to Encompass the Allegation the Handrail Was Obstructed and Could Not Be Used

In a slip and fall case, the First Department, over a two-justice dissent, reversing Supreme Court, determined that a notice of claim which generally alleged a failure to maintain a stairway in the vicinity of the second floor landing was sufficient to encompass allegations in the bill of particulars that the handrail was obstructed and could not be used:

Plaintiff’s claim that defendant failed to maintain the handrail along the stairway at or near the second floor may be fairly inferred from the notice of claim, which alleged that defendant was negligent in maintaining the second floor landing area … . The notice of claim alleged generally that defendant failed to maintain stairway “A” in the vicinity of the second floor landing, causing plaintiff’s injury. The bill of particulars merely amplified the allegations of negligence concerning the landing area by further specifying that defendant had failed to maintain the handrail at the landing area… . Thomas v New York City Hous Auth, 2014 NY Slip Op 05696, 1st Dept 8-7-14

 

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Criteria Re: Counties’ and Foster Care Agencies’ Liability for the Acts of Foster Parents Explained

In dismissing a complaint against a foster care agency based upon the alleged failure of the foster parent to seek medical care for the foster child, the Second Department explained the relevant law:

Counties and foster care agencies cannot be vicariously liable for the negligent acts of foster parents, who are essentially contract service providers … .

However, counties and foster care agencies may be sued to recover damages for negligence in the selection of foster parents and in supervision of the foster home … . In order to establish its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law dismissing so much of the complaint as alleged that it engaged in negligent placement and supervision, the appellant had to establish, prima facie, that it did not have sufficiently specific knowledge or notice of the alleged dangerous conduct which caused the infant’s injuries … . In other words, the appellant had to show that the third-party acts could not have been reasonably anticipated … . Keizer v SCO Family of Servs, 2014 NY Slip Op 06630, 2nd Dept 8-6-14

 

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Prejudice to County Investigation Stemming from Plaintiff’s Describing the Wrong Location of the Slip and Fall in the Notice of Claim Precluded Plaintiff from Amending the Notice

The Second Department determined that the failure to correctly describe the location of the slip and fall in the initial notice of claim prejudiced the investigation of the incident by the county.  Therefore, Supreme Court should not have granted plaintiff’s motion to amend the notice of claim:

A court may, in its discretion, grant a motion for leave to amend a notice of claim which has been served where it determines that two conditions have been met: first, the mistake, omission, irregularity, or defect must have been made in good faith; and second, it must appear that the public corporation has not been prejudiced thereby … . Since bad faith by the plaintiff was not asserted, the only issue presented here is whether service of the amended notice of claim would prejudice the County. The record indicates that the plaintiff’s incorrect information as to the accident location prejudiced the County in its ability to conduct a prompt and meaningful investigation of the accident site … . Murtha v Town of Huntington, 2014 NY Slip Op 05633, 2nd Dept 8-6-14

 

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Ordinary Negligence Standard Applied Where Ambulance (Responding to an Emergency) Struck Plaintiff Who Was Lawfully in the Crosswalk/Questions of Fact Whether There Was a “Special Relationship” Between the City’s Crossing Guard and the Plaintiff, and Whether the Crossing Guard Was Performing Ministerial, Rather than Discretionary, Functions (Such that the City Could Be Held Liable)

In a case involving a pedestrian who was lawfully crossing a street when struck by an ambulance responding to an emergency, in the presence of a city employee acting as a crossing guard, the Second Department determined that ordinary negligence standards applied to the ambulance (not the “emergence” “reckless disregard” standard of Vehicle and Traffic Law 1104) and that there were questions of fact whether the city was liable based upon a “special relationship” with the plaintiff and whether the city was liable because the crossing guard was performing ministerial, rather than discretionary, functions:

Failure to abide by the provisions set forth in Vehicle and Traffic Law §§ 1111 (duty to yield to pedestrians in crosswalk) and 1112 (pedestrian has right of way), which was the injury-causing conduct at issue here, is not privileged conduct pursuant to Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1104(b). As the injury-producing conduct was not specifically exempted from the rules of the road by Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1104(b), the principles of ordinary negligence apply … . * * *

“To impose liability [upon a municipality], there must be a duty that runs from the municipality to the plaintiff. We have recognized a narrow class of cases in which a duty is born of a special relationship between the plaintiff and the governmental entity” … . One of the ways that a special relationship arises is when the municipality “assumes a duty that generates justifiable reliance by the person who benefits from the duty” … . * * *

Further, “[g]overnment action, if discretionary, may not be a basis for liability, while ministerial actions may be, but only if they violate a special duty owed to the plaintiff apart from any duty to the public in general” … . Here, the City defendants failed to establish their prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against them on the basis that the crossing guard’s actions were discretionary. Based on their submissions in support of their cross motion, and under the circumstances here, the City defendants failed to eliminate all triable issues of fact as to whether the crossing guard’s actions constituted ministerial governmental functions … . Benn v New York Presbyt Hosp, 2014 NY Slip Op 05615, 2nd Dept 8-6-14

 

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Drug Treatment and Drug Testing Facilities Do Not Have a Duty to Provide the Test Results With a Disclaimer Indicating the Tests Were Done According to “Clinical,” Not “Forensic,” Standards—Here the “Clinical” Results Were Disseminated and Used In Court Proceedings

The Second Department, in a full-fledged opinion by Justice Skelos, with a concurring memorandum, determined that a substance abuse treatment facility (Daytop) and a drug testing laboratory (Bendiner) could not be liable for damages stemming from the dissemination of the results of drug tests (affecting Family Court and Drug Court proceedings).  The plaintiffs did not claim that the testing procedures were flawed or that the test results were false.  Rather, they claimed that, because the tests were done for “clinical,” not “forensic,” purposes, the results should have included a disclaimer indicating that they should not be used in court proceedings.  The Second Department refused to extend the duty owed to the plaintiffs by the defendants beyond the duty to ensure accurate test results:

Landon (91 AD3d 79, aff’d 22 NY3d 1) makes clear that there is a duty running from a drug testing laboratory to the subject of a drug test despite the lack of a contractual relationship between those parties. Further, it cannot be gainsaid that Daytop owes some duty of reasonable care to individuals it treats. The question presented here, as to both defendants, concerns the proper scope of that duty. More particularly, the question is whether the defendants’ duty of reasonable care includes the duty to label or place a disclaimer on a report, so as to indicate that the results are to be used only for clinical purposes. * * *

We conclude … that Bendiner did not have a duty to the plaintiffs to label its drug test results with a disclaimer, and that Daytop, when reporting the results to the drug treatment courts, did not have a duty to the plaintiffs to provide a disclaimer indicating that the positive test results were to be used for clinical purposes only.  Braverman v Bendiner & Schlesinger Inc, 2014 NY Slip Op 05618, 2nd Dept 8-6-14

 

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Failure to Submit Management Agreement Required Dismissal of Property Managing Agent’s Motion for Summary Judgment in a Slip and Fall Case—the Terms of the Agreement Determine the Agent’s Liability

The Second Department determined that the property managing agent, in a slip and fall case, did not eliminate all triable issues of fact concerning liability for plaintiff’s fall on black ice because it did not submit a copy of the managing agreement with its motion for summary judgment:

As a general rule, liability for a dangerous or defective condition on real property must be predicated upon ownership, occupancy, control, or special use of that property … . A duty of care on the part of a managing agent may arise where there is a comprehensive and exclusive management agreement between the agent and the owner that displaces the owner’s duty to safely maintain the premises … . Here, in moving for summary judgment, the … defendants failed to submit a copy of the written management agreement. Consequently, they failed to establish, prima facie, that the managing agent owed no duty of care to the plaintiff … . Calabro v Harbour at Blue Point Home Owners Assn Inc, 2014 NY Slip Op 05620, 2nd Dept 8-6-14

 

Criteria for “Trivial Defect” and “Open and Obvious” Explained

The Second Department determined the defendants’ motion for summary judgment in a slip and fall case was properly denied.  The plaintiff tripped over a lock on sidewalk-level doors adjacent to the defendants’ property (the defendants were the property owner and the tenant in possession).  The defendants unsuccessfully argued the defect was trivial and open and obvious.  The court summarized the relevant law:

An owner or tenant in possession of realty owes a duty to maintain the property in a reasonably safe condition … . “[W]hether a dangerous or defective condition exists on the property of another so as to create liability depends on the peculiar facts and circumstances of each case and is generally a question of fact for the jury” … . However, liability will not be imposed for trivial defects which do not constitute a trap or nuisance … . “In determining whether a defect is trivial as a matter of law, a court must examine all of the facts presented, including the width, depth, elevation, irregularity, and appearance of the defect, along with the time, place, and circumstances of the injury” … .

While a possessor of real property has a duty to maintain that property in a reasonably safe condition …, there is no duty to protect or warn against an open and obvious condition, which as a matter of law is not inherently dangerous … . “Whether a hazard is open and obvious cannot be divorced from the surrounding circumstances” … . “A condition that is ordinarily apparent to a person making reasonable use of his or her senses may be rendered a trap for the unwary where the condition is obscured or the plaintiff is distracted” … .  Doughim v M & US Prop Inc, 2014 NY Slip Op 05623, 2nd Dept 8-6-14

 

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Plaintiff Should Have Been Allowed to Add Doctor to Medical Malpractice Action After the Statute of Limitations Had Run—All the Relation-Back Criteria Were Met

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, found that the relation-back doctrine allowed the addition of a doctor (Persky) to a malpractice action after the statute of limitations had run.  Several notes in decedent’s medical records were signed by the doctor and the decedent died soon after she was discharged from the hospital, which plaintiff alleged was premature.  The court explained the relevant law:

“The relation-back doctrine, which is codified in CPLR 203(b), allows a claim asserted against a defendant in an amended complaint to relate back to claims previously asserted against a codefendant for statute of limitations purposes where the two defendants are united in interest'” … . In order for a claim asserted against a new defendant to relate back to the date the claim was filed against another defendant, the plaintiff must establish that (1) both claims arose out of the same conduct, transaction, or occurrence; (2) the new defendant is united in interest with the original defendant, and by reason of that relationship can be charged with notice of the institution of the action such that he or she will not be prejudiced in maintaining a defense on the merits; and (3) the new defendant knew or should have know that, but for a mistake by the plaintiff as to the identity of the proper parties, the action would have been brought against him or her as well … . “The linchpin’ of the relation-back doctrine is whether the new defendant had notice within the applicable limitations period” … .

it was not reasonable for Persky to conclude that the plaintiff intended to proceed only against the defendants named in the original summons and complaint, especially since the decedent died soon after she was discharged from the hospital, and the complaint asserted specific allegations of negligence relating to the decedent’s premature hospital discharge … . In addition, contrary to the conclusion of the Supreme Court, the plaintiff demonstrated that the failure to originally name Persky as a defendant was the result of a mistake, and there was no need to show that such mistake was excusable … . Roseman v Baranowski, 2014 NY Slip Op 05635, 2nd Dept 8-6-14

 

Fact that a Condition May Be Open and Obvious Does Not Eliminate Property Owner’s Duty to Keep Premises Reasonably Safe

The Second Department determined summary judgment should not have been granted to the defendants in a slip and fall case. Plaintiff tripped on a dolly or “pallet jack” which was low to the ground and had been left in an aisle of defendants’ store. The fact that the presence of the dolly was open and obvious did not eliminate the defendants’ obligation to keep the premises safe:

Proof that a dangerous condition is open and obvious does not preclude a finding of liability against an owner for failure to maintain property in a safe condition … . While such proof is relevant to the issue of the plaintiff’s comparative negligence, a hazard that is open and obvious “may be rendered a trap for the unwary where the condition is obscured or the plaintiff distracted” … . “The determination of [w]hether an asserted hazard is open and obvious cannot be divorced from the surrounding circumstances'” …, and whether a condition is not inherently dangerous, or constitutes a reasonably safe environment, depends on the totality of the specific facts of each case … .

Here, the defendants contend that, even if they created the condition at issue, they are entitled to judgment as a matter of law because the pallet jack in the aisle was an open and obvious condition, and not inherently dangerous. However, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, the defendants failed to eliminate all triable issues of fact as to whether the pallet jack was inherently dangerous …, and failed to establish prima facie that they maintained the premises in a reasonably safe condition… . Russo v Home Goods, Inc, 2014 NY Slip Op 05529, 2nd Dept 7-30-14

 

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Advertising in New York and an Interactive Website Not Enough to Exercise Long-Arm Jurisdiction

The Second Department determined Supreme Court properly dismissed an action against a Vermont ski business (Killington) because plaintiffs failed demonstrate a basis for New York’s long-arm jurisdiction. The court noted that advertising in New York and the existence of an interactive website through which out-of-state residents make reservations for participation in the defendant’s ski camp was not sufficient to bring the defendant within the jurisdiction of New York courts:

Even assuming that Killington engaged in substantial advertising in New York, as the plaintiffs claim, the plaintiffs have not demonstrated that Killington also engaged in substantial activity within this State sufficient to satisfy the solicitation-plus standard. Contrary to the plaintiffs’ contention, this Court’s decision in Grimaldi v Guinn (72 AD3d 37, 49-50) does not stand for the principle that a business’s interactive website, accessible in New York, subjects it to suit in this State for all purposes. Instead, the Grimaldi decision stands only for the more limited principle that a website may support specific jurisdiction in New York where the claim asserted has some relationship to the business transacted via the website … . Here, even Killington’s alleged substantial solicitation in New York constitutes no more than solicitation … .

CPLR 302(a)(1), the section of New York’s long-arm statute at issue in this case, grants New York courts jurisdiction over nondomiciliaries when the action arises out of the nondomiciliaries’ “transact[ion of] any business within the state or contract [] . . . to supply goods or services in the state” (CPLR 302[a][1]). Pursuant to CPLR 302(a)(1), jurisdiction is proper “even though the defendant never enters New York, so long as the defendant’s activities here were purposeful and there is a substantial relationship between the transaction and the claim asserted” … . “Purposeful activities are those with which a defendant, through volitional acts, avails itself of the privilege of conducting activities within the forum State, thus invoking the benefits and protections of its laws'” … . Mejia-Haffner v Killington, Ltd, 2014 NY Slip OP 05522, 2nd Dept 7-30-14

 

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