Recent Blog Posts
Driven to Distraction: Are you intoxicated?
Texting while driving is a serious danger not only to the driver but to others using the roadways. New York State now bans texting while driving. Governor Cuomo issued an administrative order that penalizes drivers with five points on their license if convicted of texting while operating a motor vehicle. It takes 11 points… Read More »
Court Rules on New York Firefighter’s Slip and Fall Injury During Training Exercise
In June 2009, a New York City firefighter injured his ankle in a slip and fall during a training exercise. The firefighter was using an experimental hose which he claimed had too much pressure, and a backup person was not present to provide stability. An additional factor leading to the slip and fall was… Read More »
Emergency Responders Liable for Negligence, But Only when Obeying the Law
New York Vehicle & Traffic Law section 1104 provides an exemption from liability for police, fire, ambulances and other emergency responders who cause a traffic accident while responding to an emergency. In such situations, emergency responders are only liable if they act with reckless disregard for the safety of others; they are not liable… Read More »
Brooklyn Premises Liability Lawsuit Survives Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment
A recent decision in the Supreme Court, Kings County serves as a reminder of the facts which must be proven or refuted in a premises liability case, including when the property was last inspected before the personal injury accident occurred. In the latest phase of litigation that has been ongoing since 2009, the judge… Read More »
Manslaughter Conviction Upheld in Mount Hope Traffic Accident
The conviction of Patrick Asaro of Manslaughter in the Second Degree was upheld last week by the New York State Court of Appeals, despite the fact that the prosecution’s expert witness had lost his notes by the time of trial and could not replicate the conclusions he made in his report that the defendant… Read More »
Application of Scaffold Law to Ladder Fall Leads to Liability for Property Owner
In September, the Supreme Court, New York County, granted summary judgment to the plaintiff on the question of liability in the case of Declercq v. WWP Office, LLC. This means that the defendant building owner is being held liable as a matter of law, and the only issue at trial will be the amount… Read More »
NY Appeals Court Allows Claim of Negligence Over Cow in Road Could Dog Bites Be Next?
The course of New York law regarding personal injury caused by domestic animals has finally taken a turn from the absurd to the sane, blowing a welcome breath of common sense into what had become a rigid and arguably ridiculous approach to the question of liability when people are injured by animals due to… Read More »
Owner and Contractor Held Liable for Trip and Fall Injury on Construction Site at New York’s Plaza Hotel
A laborer involved in demolition work on a construction site at the Plaza Hotel in New York was injured when she tripped and fell on a defectively-constructed ramp. The ramp had been constructed to provide access between a hoist car platform and the 10th floor about two to four feet below the platform. As… Read More »
Legislature Introduces Changes to New York Scaffold Law
New York has long had a policy of strict liability for contractors who violate safety regulations at the expense of their employees. Construction workers who are injured in a fall or other elevation-related accident can recover damages for their injuries from the contractor responsible for the site. If the contractor’s safety violation was a… Read More »
Summer Vacation Means More Teen Drivers on the Road, More Car Crashes
Automobile crashes are the number one cause of death for teens aged 16-20 in New York, and teenagers are at a higher risk for being involved in car wrecks than any other age group. While school is out for the summer, more teens are on the road at all hours of the day, increasing… Read More »