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IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE, THE DEFENDANT SNOW-REMOVAL CONTRACTOR DID NOT NEED TO ADDRESS ANY ESPINAL EXCEPTION IN ITS ANSWER BECAUSE PLAINTIFF DID NOT ALLEGE AN EXCEPTION APPLIED; PLAINTIFF DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THAT AN ESPINAL EXCEPTION APPLIED IN OPPOSITION TO SUMMARY JUDGMENT; DEFENDANT’S SUMMARY JUDGMENT MOTION SHOULD HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court in this slip and fall case, determined defendant snow-removal company (WM) did not need to address in its answer any Espinal exception to the rule that a contractor is not liable to a plaintiff who is not a party to the snow-removal contract because no Espinal exception was raised by the plaintiff in the pleadings. In opposition to the summary judgment motion, plaintiff did not demonstrate that any of the Espinal exceptions applied:

… WM demonstrated its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it by coming forward with evidence that the plaintiff was not a party to the snow removal contract … . Since the plaintiff did not allege facts in the pleadings that would establish the possible applicability of any of the Espinal exceptions, WM was not required to affirmatively demonstrate tat these exceptions did not apply in order to establish its prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law … . In opposition, the plaintiff failed to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether WM launched an instrument of harm … , and failed to raise a triable issue of fact as to the applicability of the other Espinal exceptions. Accordingly, the Supreme Court should have granted that branch of WM’s motion which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it. Forbes v Equity One Northeast Portfolio, Inc., 2023 NY Slip Op 00305, Second Dept 1-25-23

Practice Point: Generally, in a slip and fall case, a snow-removal contractor is not liable to a plaintiff who is not a party to the snow-removal contract. The contractor will be liable only if an Espinal exception applies (for example, if the contractor “launches an instrument of harm” which injured plaintiff). If the plaintiff does not allege an Espinal exception applies, the contractor need not address the issue in the answer. If the plaintiff does not, at the summary judgment stage, demonstrate an exception applies, the contractor will be granted summary judgment.

 

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NEW YORK DID NOT HAVE LONG-ARM OR PERSONAL JURISDICTION OVER THE ITALIAN MANUFACTURER OF A HOSE USED AS A COMPONENT IN A DISHWASHER MADE AND SOLD BY A NONPARTY (SECOND DEPT). ​

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined New York did not have long-arm or personal jurisdiction over an Italian company which manufactured a hose used as a component in a dishwasher made and sold by a nonparty:

… [T]he defendant was an Italian corporation with its business located in that country. It manufactured, sold, and distributed its goods in Italy, and had no office or agent in New York. The plaintiff failed to show that the defendant purposefully availed itself of the privilege of conducting activities in New York so as to subject it to long-arm jurisdiction pursuant to CPLR 302(a)(1) … . The plaintiff also failed to make a prima facie showing that personal jurisdiction exists under CPLR 302(a)(3).

Since the defendant was not subject to the jurisdiction of New York, the plaintiff’s service of process upon it was not valid (see CPLR 313 …). Economy Premier Assur. Co. v Miflex 2 S.p.A., 2023 NY Slip Op 00303,Second Dept 1-25-23

Practice Point: Here plaintiff did not demonstrate the Italian company which manufactured a component of a dishwasher purposefully availed itself of the privilege of conducting business in New York. Therefore New York did not have long-arm or personal jurisdiction over the Italian company.

 

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THE SECOND DEPARTMENT SEARCHED THE RECORD AND AWARDED SUMMARY JUDGMENT TO A NONAPPEALING PARTY IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department noted that it has to power to search the record and award summary judgment to a party which did not appeal. This was a slip and fall case and decedent’s estate (the nonappealing party) was a defendant. The evidence demonstrated decedent (Kass) did not have actual or constructive knowledge of the debris on the sidewalk which allegedly caused plaintiff to fall:

Although Kass did not properly appeal from the order, this Court has the authority to search the record and grant summary judgment to a nonappealing party with respect to an issue that was the subject of a motion before the Supreme Court … . Upon searching the record, we award Howard Alan Kave, as representative of Kass’s estate, summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against him based upon the same rationale which supports the award of summary judgment in favor of the Mall [i.e., no actual or constructive notice of the condition]. Chiamulera v New Windsor Mall, 2023 NY Slip Op 00300, Second Dept 1-25-23

Practice Point: The appellate division has the power to search the record and award summary judgment to a  nonappealing party.

 

PLAINTIFF’S CONDUCT WAS THE SOLE PROXIMATE CAUSE OF HIS FALL; THE LABOR LAW 240(1), 241(6) AND 200 CAUSES OF ACTION SHOULD HAVE BEEN DISMISSED (SECOND DEPT). ​

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff’s conduct was the sole proximate cause of his fall and the Labor Law 240(1), 241(6) and 200 causes of action should have been dismissed. Plaintiff stepped on a wooden brace getting out of a ditch and fell. The brace was not to be used as a walkway or ramp and ladders had been provided:

… [P]laintiff exited the excavation by stepping on a wooden cross brace which was not intended as a walkway, rather than using one of the ladders that were provided, and which he had been instructed to use, for that purpose. Thus, the defendants established that the plaintiff’s conduct was the sole proximate cause of his injuries … .

… Insofar as [the Labor Law 241(6)] cause of action is predicated upon violations of 12 NYCRR 23-1.22(b)(2) and (4), the defendants established that those regulations are inapplicable to the facts of this case, as the wooden cross brace from which the plaintiff fell, was not a runway or ramp constructed for the use of persons … . Insofar as that cause of action is predicated upon violations of 12 NYCRR 23-1.7(f) and 23-4.3, the defendants established, prima facie, that the City did not violate those regulations, in that ladders were provided at the excavation site … . …

[Re: the Labor Law 200 cause of action] defendants demonstrated … that the plaintiff’s alleged injuries did not result from a dangerous condition, but rather were caused by the plaintiff’s own conduct in stepping on a wooden cross brace which was not intended for that purpose … . Calle v City of New York, 2023 NY Slip Op 00297, Second Dept 1-25-23

Practice Point: Here ladders were available to climb out of ditch and plaintiff stepped on a wooden brace instead. The brace broke and plaintiff fell. Plaintiff’s conduct was the sole proximate cause of the accident and the Labor Law 240(1), 241(6) and 200 causes of action should have been dismissed.

 

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PLAINTIFF BANK DID NOT DEMONSTRATE THE NOTICE OF FORECLOSURE WAS MAILED IN ACCORDANCE WITH RPAPL 1304; THE BANK’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the plaintiff bank in this foreclosure action did not demonstrate the notice of foreclosure was mailed in accordance with the requirements of RPAPL 1304:

… [T]he plaintiff relied on the affidavit of Brown, an employee of Nationstar, the plaintiff’s loan servicer, who stated that the plaintiff had mailed the RPAPL 1304 notice in accordance with the plaintiff’s practices and procedures. However, Brown then stated that her conclusion was based on her review of Nationstar’s file, and on Nationstar’s mailing practices and procedures. Thus, Brown’s affidavit failed to eliminate triable issues of fact as to who actually mailed the RPAPL 1304 notice, and the plaintiff failed to establish, prima facie, that it complied with RPAPL 1304 … . Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v Matsuoka, 2023 NY Slip Op 00230, Second Dept 1-18-23

Practice Point: In a foreclosure action, if the bank doesn’t prove who mailed the notice of foreclosure as required by RPAPL 1304 the bank’s motion for summary judgment should not be granted.

 

THE TEN-MONTH DELAY BEFORE SEEKING TO AMEND THE COMPLAINT AND DEFENDANT’S SPECULATIVE ALLEGATION OF PREJUDICE WERE NOT SUFFICIENT GROUNDS FOR DENYING THE MOTION TO AMEND (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined plaintiff’s motion to amend the complaint should have been granted. The ten-month delay in seeking the amendment was not a sufficient ground for denying the motion:

A party may amend a pleading “at any time” by leave of the court (CPLR 3025[b] …). “‘In the absence of prejudice or surprise resulting directly from the delay in seeking leave, such applications are to be freely granted unless the proposed amendment is palpably insufficient or patently devoid of merit'” …  The determination to permit or deny amendment is committed to the sound discretion of the trial court … . “‘In exercising its discretion, the court should consider how long the party seeking the amendment was aware of the facts upon which the motion was predicated [and] whether a reasonable excuse for the delay was offered'” … . However, “[m]ere lateness is not a barrier to the amendment. It must be lateness coupled with significant prejudice to the other side, the very elements of the laches doctrine” … . “The party opposing the application has the burden of establishing prejudice, which requires a showing that the party has been hindered in the preparation of [its] case or has been prevented from taking some measure in support of [its] position”  … .

… [Defendant] failed to demonstrate that it would be surprised or prejudiced by the proposed amendments … . The details concerning the communications between the parties regarding the plaintiff’s claims were “premised upon the same facts, transactions or occurrences alleged in the original complaint” … and merely elaborated on the same theory of liability alleged in the original complaint … . [Defendan’s] contention that evidence may have been lost in the months following the independent medical examination was too speculative to demonstrate any prejudice from the plaintiff’s delay … . Flowers v Mombrun, 2023 NY Slip Op 00206, Second Dept 1-18-23

Practice Point: Here the ten-month delay before moving to amend the complaint was not a sufficient ground for denial of the motion. The defendant’s allegation of prejudice caused by the delay was speculative.

 

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PLAINTIFF IN THIS TRAFFIC ACCIDENT CASE ALLEGED DEFENDANT ATTORNEY NEGLIGENTLY FAILED TO PURSUE DAMAGES IN EXCESS OF THE POLICY LIMITS AGAINST THE TORTFEASOR PERSONALLY; DEFENDANT DID NOT DEMONSTRATE PLAINTIFF WOULD NOT HAVE PREVAILED AGAINST THE TORTFEASOR PERSONALLY; DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing (modifying) Supreme Court, determined the legal malpractice action should not have been dismissed. It was alleged the defendant attorney, in this traffic accident case, failed to pursue damages in excess of the insurance-policy limits against the tortfeasor personally. Defendant did not demonstrate plaintiff would not have prevailed in an action against the tortfeasor personally:

“In an action to recover damages for legal malpractice, a plaintiff must demonstrate that the attorney failed to exercise the ordinary reasonable skill and knowledge commonly possessed by a member of the legal profession and that the attorney’s breach of this duty proximately caused the plaintiff to sustain actual and ascertainable damages” … . “The plaintiff is required to plead actual, ascertainable damages that resulted from the attorneys’ negligence” … .

Here, the defendants failed to establish, prima facie, that the plaintiff had no actual or ascertainable damages. “The defendant must affirmatively demonstrate the absence of one of the elements of legal malpractice” … . The complaint alleged that the damages included the failure to pursue SUM benefits, as well as the failure to pursue recovery against the alleged tortfeasor. Since it was alleged … that the defendants’ legal malpractice prevented the plaintiff from obtaining a judgment against the alleged tortfeasor, the defendants had the burden of affirmatively demonstrating that the plaintiff would not have prevailed against the alleged tortfeasor or that the alleged tortfeasor did not have personal assets such that his motorist insurance policy limit that was recovered in the amount of $50,000, was the maximum judgment that could have been obtained from him … . The defendants failed to do so. Chicas v Cassar, 2023 NY Slip Op 00202, Second Dept 1-18-23

Practice Point: Defendant attorney in this legal malpractice case did not demonstrate plaintiff would not have prevailed in an action against the tortfeasor personally in the underlying traffic accident case. Plaintiff alleged defendant attorney negligently failed to seek damages over and above the policy limits from the tortfeasor. Therefore defendant’s motion for summary judgment should not have been granted.

 

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THE TERMS OF THE LEASE DID NOT DEMONSTRATE DEFENDANT OUT-OF-POSSESSION LANDLORD DID NOT HAVE A DUTY TO MAKE NONSTRUCTURAL FLOOR REPAIRS; THE LANDLORD’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN THIS SLIP AND FALL CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court in this slip and fall case, determined the terms of the lease raised a question of fact whether the out-of-possession landlord was required to repair nonstructural floor defects:

“An out-of-possession landlord is not liable for injuries that occur on its premises unless the landlord has retained control over the premises and has a ‘duty imposed by statute or assumed by contract or a course of conduct'” … . “Where the terms of an agreement are unambiguous, interpretation is a question of law for the court” … . Here, according to the lease agreement, the landlord was required to “make all structural, exterior walls, floor and roof repairs and replacements to Tenant’s Building.” Contrary to the defendant’s contention, pursuant to the lease agreement, its duty to repair the floor was not limited to floor conditions which were structural in nature, and it failed to establish, prima facie, that it had no duty to repair the alleged nonstructural condition at issue … . Weidner v Basser-Kaufman 228, LLC, 2023 NY Slip Op 00126, Second Dept 1-11-23

Practice Point: The lease provided the out-of-possession landlord was required to “make all structural, exterior walls, floor and roof repairs and replacements to Tenant’s Building.” The landlord was not entitled to summary judgment in this slip and fall case on the ground the lease did not create a duty to make nonstructural floor repairs.

 

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PLAINTIFFS’ COUNSEL’S GOOD-FAITH AFFIRMATION DID NOT INCLUDE DETAILS OF ANY EFFORTS TO RESOLVE THE DISCOVERY ISSUE AND WAS THEREFORE INADEQUATE; PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION TO COMPEL DEFENDANT TO SUBMIT TO A DEPOSITION UNDER THREAT OF PRECLUSION SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED (SECOND DEPT).

​The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the motion compelling defendant to appear for a deposition under threat of preclusion should not have been granted because plaintiffs’ counsel’s good-faith affirmation was inadequate:

Pursuant to 22 NYCRR 202.7(a) and (c), a motion relating to disclosure must be accompanied by an affirmation from moving counsel attesting to a good faith effort to resolve the issues raised in the motion, including the time, place, and nature of the consultation as well as the issues discussed. Here, the affirmation of good faith submitted by the plaintiffs’ counsel in support of their motion to compel disclosure and for other related relief failed to provide any detail of their efforts to resolve the issues. Therefore, the plaintiffs’ motion should have been denied … . Muchnik v Mendez Trucking, Inc., 2023 NY Slip Op 00100, Second Dept 1-11-23

Practice Pont: Here the affidavit plaintiffs’ counsel submitted did not detail the efforts made to resolve the discovery issue and was therefore inadequate. Therefore Supreme Court should not have granted plaintiffs’ motion to compel defendant’s deposition under threat of preclusion.

 

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THE PETITION FOR LEAVE TO FILE A LATE NOTICE OF CLAIM IN THIS ROAD-DEFECT SLIP AND FALL CASE SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GRANTED; THE NINE-MONTH DELAY WAS NOT EXPLAINED; THE CITIY DID NOT HAVE TIMELY NOTICE OF THE POTENTIAL LAWSUIT; AND PETITIONER DID NOT SHOW THE CITY WOULD NOT BE PREJUDICED BY THE DELAY (SECOND DEPT).

​The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined the petition for leave to file a late notice of claim in this road-defect slip and fall case should not have been granted:

… [T]he petitioner’s initial delay in serving a notice of claim upon the City was reasonable, as she provided evidence that she was incapacitated until April 2019 … . However, the petitioner failed to demonstrate a reasonable excuse for the additional nine-month delay between the time she was released from the hospital and the time she commenced this proceeding for leave to serve a late notice of claim … .

… [T]he evidence submitted in support of the petition failed to establish that the City acquired actual knowledge of the essential facts constituting the claim within 90 days after the claim arose or a reasonable time thereafter … . The police accident report, the NYPD investigative documents, and the FOIL requests to the NYPD and the DOT did not contain facts from which it can be “readily inferred that a potentially actionable wrong had been committed” by the City … .

In addition, the petitioner failed to satisfy her initial burden of demonstrating that the City would not be substantially prejudiced in maintaining a defense on the merits as a result of the delay … . Matter of Salazar v City of New York, 2023 NY Slip Op 00095, Second Dept 1-11-23

Practice Point: Here the petition for leave to file a late notice of claim should not have been granted. The nine-month delay was not explained; the city did not have timely notice of the potential lawsuit, and petitioner did not show the city would not be prejudiced by the delay.

 

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