Plaintiff Awarded Summary Judgment

If a picture is worth a thousand words, a video must be worth… more. A recent decision, Franco v. Palmer (Supreme Court, Queens County, decided December 1, 2014), illustrates the significant benefits of video evidence in a car accident case. The court granted summary judgment to the plaintiff, finding that a surveillance video of an…

Read More Video Surveillance Tape Results in Summary Judgment for Plaintiff in Car Accident Case
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While many personal injury cases involve various factual issues (particularly relating to the often-contested issue of negligence) that require resolution by the trier of fact, some contain issues that may be resolved as a matter of law. One example is the so-called “pedestrian knockdown” case in which a pedestrian is struck while lawfully crossing the street…

Read More Plaintiff Entitled to Summary Judgment in Pedestrian-Knockdown Case
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In Blanco v. NBC Trust No. 1996A, a construction accident personal injury case, the Appellate Division, First Department held that plaintiff was entitled to partial summary judgment on the issue of liability under Labor Law 240(1) claim. In finding for plaintiff, the court held: Dismissal of the Labor Law § 240(1) claim was improper in this…

Read More Plaintiff Electrician Entitled to Summary Judgment in Ladder Fall Case
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In Brown v. Mackiewicz (decided September 10, 2014), the Appellate Division, Second Department reversed the denial of plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, and ordered that plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment on liability be granted. Translation: plaintiff wins (at least on the issue of liability). In this car accident personal injury case, the plaintiff was a…

Read More Pedestrian Struck By Ambulance in Crosswalk Wins Summary Judgment on Liability
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In Barney-Yeboah v. Metro-North Commuter Railroad, the Appellate Division, First Department held that plaintiff was entitled to summary judgment on the issue of liability under the doctrine of resipsa loquitur. Here are the facts of this personal injury case: Plaintiff, a passenger on defendant’s train, was allegedly injured when a ceiling panel in the train…

Read More Court Holds that Train Panel Injury Results in Summary Judgment in Plaintiff’s Favor Under Doctrine of Res Ipsa Loquitur
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In Biniachvili v. Yeshivat Shaare Torah, Inc., the Appellate Division, Second Department affirmed summary judgment for plaintiffs in their personal injury case due to the defendant’s disposal of a grate that allegedly caused injury. This, the court held, amounted to spoliation of evidence. The facts: On May 22, 2009, the infant plaintiffs …, along with approximately…

Read More Plaintiffs Awarded Summary Judgment Due to Evidence Spoliation in Personal Injury Case
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In Jerez v. Tishman Constr. Corp. of N.Y. (decided June 24, 2014), the Appellate Division, First Department held that plaintiff was entitled to summary judgment on his Labor Law § 240(1) claim: Plaintiff, a carpenter, made a prima facie showing of his entitlement to judgment as a matter of law on the issue of defendants’ liability under Labor Law…

Read More Falling Carpenter Entitled to Summary Judgment on Labor Law 240(1) Claim
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Employment discrimination cases – particularly those involving allegations of harassment or a hostile work environment – are often not suitable for resolution as a matter of law (or “summary judgment”), since they frequently turn on factual disputes more appropriately resolved by a jury rather than a judge. Some cases, however, are suitable for disposition as a…

Read More Court Grants Restaurant Co-Workers Summary Judgment on Sexual Harassment (Hostile Work Environment) Claims
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New York Labor Law § 240(1) is a very important statute, as it provides significant protections to workers who are exposed to gravity-related risks without being provided with adequate safety devices. However, in order for its considerable protections to kick in, it must be determined, in the first instance, whether it applies. Labor Law § 240(1) provides, in pertinent…

Read More Replacement of Windows Was “Repair”, Rather Than “Routine Maintenance”, Entitling Plaintiff Worker to Summary Judgment in Labor Law 240(1) Construction Accident Case
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In DeRose v. Bloomingdale’s Inc., the Appellate Division, First Department held that plaintiff was entitled to partial summary judgment on liability on his Labor Law § 240(1) claim. While this case is but one data point in the ocean of Labor Law § 240(1) case law, it underscores the important point that a worker should not pay…

Read More Injured Carpenter Entitled to Summary Judgment on Liability, Where Supervisor Instructed Worker Not to Use Appropriate Scaffold
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