Results

We obtained dismissal of all claims against our client in a case involving a slip and fall at a hospital. The plaintiff was employed by a trucking company and was in the process of filling a liquid oxygen tank located in the parking lot of the hospital when he fell on a sheet of ice near the oxygen station evaporators. He sustained numerous injuries, including injuries to his spine, resulting in cervical fusion. As a result of the accident, the plaintiff alleged significant lost wages, in addition to numerous personal injuries. Our client designed, installed and maintained the oxygen station pursuant to a lease agreement with the hospital. We submitted evidence that our client properly inspected and maintained the oxygen station and that the ice was not caused by the operation of the oxygen station. After years of litigation and numerous depositions, our client moved for summary judgment, seeking a dismissal of the plaintiff’s claims and for an order of indemnification against the hospital based on the lease agreement. The court granted our motion in its entirety and dismissed all claims.

We successfully defended against the plaintiff’s appeal in the Appellate Division, Second Department. The appeal challenged an order that adhered to a prior ruling by the Supreme Court, Westchester County, which had granted the defendant’s motion for summary judgment, dismissing the complaint. In our brief, we argued that the appeal should be dismissed due to the plaintiff’s failure to assemble a proper record on appeal. The plaintiff omitted critical documents relied upon by the motion court, including submissions supporting and opposing the defendant’s motion. At oral argument, we persuasively presented the case before a panel of four justices. The Appellate Division ruled in favor of the defendant, dismissing the appeal without reaching the merits. The court reaffirmed that it is the appellant’s responsibility to provide a complete record containing all relevant materials from the lower court. The plaintiff’s failure to do so, the court held, made meaningful appellate review impossible. The decision was unanimous, and no further appeal is available—securing a decisive victory for our client.

We secured the dismissal of a fraudulent claim against our insurance carrier client in a New York No-Fault/PIP Action. We argued the medical provider’s assignor was involved in a staged loss/fraudulent accident in order to obtain No-Fault/PIP benefits. In support of the defense, an SIU affidavit and the transcript of an Examination Under Oath (EUO) from the assignor were submitted, which included facts that casted doubt on the legitimacy of the accident. These included details such as the lack of an official police report, the insurance policy having been purchased right before the accident, and the inability of the assignor to remember key details of the accident. After a successful argument at the arbitration, the arbitrator ruled in favor of our client.

We successfully defended an appeal of the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to the defendants in a motor vehicle accident case. The evidence indicated that, at the time of the accident, the plaintiff’s vehicle had stopped while partially merged from a service road onto the main traffic lane when it was struck by our clients’ truck, which was driving on the main lane, on the driver’s side of the plaintiff’s car. On appeal, the plaintiff argued our clients were a proximate cause of the accident. The Appellate Division, First Department rejected the plaintiff’s arguments and unanimously affirmed the trial court’s ruling. The First Department held the plaintiff’s contention, that he was stopped for 5 to 15 seconds before impact, does not change the fact that the defendant driver, who had the right-of-way, was entitled to assume the plaintiff would obey traffic laws and not merge until it was safe to do so. The First Department affirmed that a driver with the right-of-way who only has seconds to react to a failure to yield is not comparatively at fault for an accident.   

We secured a decision granting our motion to dismiss an attorney malpractice matter in Orange County, NY. The plaintiff and daughter of the co-defendants sued her parents and our client for breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty denominated as promissory estoppel, and constructive trust and sought damages of $800,000. The co-defendants allegedly purchased a property for the plaintiff to live and work in and agreed to deed the property to the plaintiff once she paid the mortgage in full. Our client created a family trust naming the plaintiff as trustee, in which the property would be transferred to the plaintiff following the death of both parents. However, following a family dispute, the co-defendants replaced the plaintiff as trustee with our client. Upon the request of the co-defendants and in accordance with the terms of the trust, our client transferred the house to another beneficiary. We filed a motion to dismiss on all counts which the court granted in full.

We successfully achieved affirmance of the trial court’s decision to dismiss all claims against a property owner and designer in a New York labor law matter. The plaintiff was injured when he fell from a ladder stacked atop a bakers scaffold while performing renovation work on a four-story brownstone. The 16-foot ladder and the scaffold were provided by his employer—the general contractor—and set up at his employer’s discretion. The plaintiff filed an action against the owner of the property and the designer, alleging violations of various labor law claims, including labor law Sections 240(1), 241(6) and 200. The defendants’ motion for summary judgment, seeking a dismissal of all claims, was filed after the plaintiff’s depositions but before any of the defendants were deposed and with extensive discovery outstanding. The plaintiff opposed the motion and cross moved to compel further discovery. The Supreme Court granted the defendants’ motion for summary judgment, dismissing all claims as the property owners qualified for the owner and two-family dwelling exception to the labor law. The trial court held that the defendants did not direct, supervise or control any of the plaintiff’s activities. Therefore, according to the affidavit, the single-family home exception did not apply. After oral argument, the Appellate Division affirmed the trial court’s decision with costs.

We won summary judgment for an online car sharing platform that connects vehicle owners (hosts) with travelers and locals (guests) seeking to book those vehicles for a fee in New York. The plaintiff alleged that he sustained serious injuries when he was involved in an automobile accident that collided with a vehicle listed on our client’s website. The Bronx County Supreme Court granted summary judgment in favor of our client, ruling that the defendant demonstrated that it is a peer-to-peer car sharing service; it does not provide rental services; it does not own, maintain or repair any of the vehicles on its platform; it is not responsible for the acts and omissions of the hosts or guests; and there is no agency relationship between defendant and the hosts or guests.

We obtained summary judgment after oral argument with Judge Anne Swern in Kings County Supreme Court in New York. This case involved a motor vehicle accident where the plaintiff was a backseat passenger in an Uber that rear-ended a vehicle owned and operated by our clients. We established that our clients were stopped for 10-15 seconds at a light when they were rear-ended by the Uber driver, who was precluded and could not submit any testimony in this matter. Further, by establishing that the plaintiff was asleep at the time, she could not offer any evidence of how the accident happened. 

We secured summary judgment in a New York case in which the plaintiff claimed that she slipped and fell on stairs in our client’s building. The plaintiff alleged that she slipped on a wet condition on the stairway landing in an inadequately illuminated stairway. The defendant submitted an affidavit of its expert, which stated that the lighting measurements taken in the stairway complied with code. The defendant also demonstrated that it did not create the condition by submitting an affidavit of the building’s porter, who stated that neither he nor any other porter mopped that morning. The affidavit further established that the defendant did not have notice of the alleged wet condition or defective lighting, as it did not receive any complaints about a hazardous condition on the floor at any time before the accident, and that he inspected the premises approximately two hours prior to the plaintiff’s incident and did not observe any defective condition. In light of this evidence, the plaintiff’s claim that the area was mopped by the defendant was speculative, as she was unable to present any facts sufficient to establish when the stairway was mopped or if the cause of the wet stairway was due to the defendant’s mopping the stairway.

We secured a victory in a case involving an Article 75 petition seeking to vacate a master arbitration award. Following oral arguments, the court unanimously affirmed the lower court’s decision as neither the lower arbitration award nor the master arbitration award were neither irrational nor contained errors of law or fact.

The alleged incident occurred outside of a school construction site. We received a favorable decision of a pre-answer motion to dismiss the plaintiff’s complaint while simultaneously succeeding in defending against the plaintiff’s cross-motion seeking leave to file a late notice of claim. The plaintiff filed a summons and complaint, alleging a trip and fall over several cinderblocks located outside of a construction site. In the pre-answer motion to dismiss the plaintiff’s complaint, we argued that the plaintiff failed to comply with the New York General Municipal Law, which requires the plaintiff to satisfy several preconditions prior to commencing an action against a public corporation, including filing a notice of claim within 90 days after accrual of the claim and performance of a 50-H hearing. The plaintiff opposed and cross-moved, seeking leave to file a late notice of claim. We opposed, arguing that should the late filing of a notice of claim be granted, the defendant would incur substantial prejudice as the incident occurred over a year prior and the defendant would not be able to properly conduct the necessary pre-suit investigation, as is the intent of the preconditions prescribed by New York General Municipal Law. The judge granted our motion to dismiss the plaintiff’s complaint and denied the plaintiff’s motion seeking leave to file a late notice of claim. 

The arbitrations were commenced by medical providers against the respondent-carrier for non-payment of medical bills insofar as the policyholder and the claimant engaged in material misrepresentation in the procurement of the policy, and in the presentation of the claim. We submitted a defense brief that included numerous exhibits, including examination under oath transcripts, an affidavit from the respondent-carrier’s underwriting department and screenshots of insurance premium payments from the claimant to the policyholder. At the hearings, the defense argued that the respondent-carrier owed no duty of coverage insofar as the policyholder and the claimant engaged in material misrepresentation in the procurement of the policy and in the presentation of the claim. Specifically, the policyholder fraudulently obtained an insurance policy with the respondent-carrier on behalf of the claimant. The misrepresentation was deemed “material” insofar as the respondent-carrier would have charged a higher premium based on the actual garaging location of the insured vehicle and, moreover, would not have otherwise insured the claimant. The arbitrator held that the respondent-carrier established, by a preponderance of credible evidence, that the instant loss involved fraud and misrepresentation in the procurement of the insurance policy; the policyholders’ misrepresentation with regard to the ownership, operation and garaging of the insured vehicle was material; the respondent-carrier would not have issued the policy if the facts had been disclosed by the policyholders, and that the respondent-carrier was justified in denying the claim.

The appeal was brought before the Appellate Division, Second Department. The plaintiff was a pedestrian who was struck by a car in the mall parking lot and sued our client, the mall owner. The plaintiff claimed that the parking lot was negligently designed, which led to the accident. The trial court granted summary judgment to the mall, saying that there was no evidence that the parking lot was negligently designed, or that the design led to the accident. A unanimous appellate court affirmed.

We successfully secured dismissal of a New York no-fault/PIP arbitration commenced by a medical provider against a major insurance carrier for non-payment of medical bills. At the hearing, the carrier argued that the provider was ineligible for reimbursement of the disputed charges because it was not licensed in New York State with the Department of Education and the Department of State when the services at issue were rendered. Under the New York no-fault/PIP regulations, a provider of health care services is not eligible for reimbursement under the insurance law if it fails to meet any applicable state or local licensing requirements. In support of the threshold defense, we submitted copies of printouts from these Departments as conclusive evidence that the provider was not properly licensed in New York State when the services were rendered and was therefore ineligible for New York no-fault reimbursement.

Obtained a dismissal at trial in Civil Court of the City of New York, Queens County. ​The plaintiff, an acupuncture facility, alleged wrongful denial of personal injury protection/no-fault benefits relating to acupuncture services rendered to its assignee, a claimant who sought benefits under the defendant-carrier’s policy. The trial judge granted dismissal of the complaint on the basis of the carrier’s defense, that payments were issued in accordance with the applicable fee schedule and, therefore, nothing further was owed to the plaintiff.

We obtained summary judgment in Civil Court of the City of New York, New York County. ​The plaintiff commenced an action seeking reimbursement of PIP benefits under the defendant-carrier's policy for anesthesia rendered to the claimant during a surgical procedure. After establishing that the claimant failed to appear at multiple, duly-scheduled independent medical examinations—a condition precedent to coverage—the complaint was dismissed.

Marshall Dennehey successfully obtained summary judgment, dismissing all claims against our client in a marine construction New York Labor Law case in the Supreme Court in Rockland County. ​The case involved bodily injuries sustained to an employee of our client, a sub-subcontractor at the site of the new Mario Cuomo Bridge. The property owner, general contractor and the subcontractor each cross-claimed and/or third-partied our client into the case, all seeking contractual and common law indemnity and contribution pursuant to the terms and conditions of the various contracts. We argued, and the court agreed, that since there was no finding of negligence against our client in causing the injuries sustained to the plaintiff, the indemnification clauses were not implicated. The court found there was no evidence demonstrating that our client caused, in whole or in part, the injuries the plaintiff sustained. The plaintiff and general contractor filed motions to reargue, which were denied.

We represented a plumbing subcontractor in a case venued in Supreme Court, Bronx County. ​The plaintiff alleged he sustained serious neck and back injuries as a result of falling pipes. The plaintiff had been hired by a subcontractor involved with boiler replacement work at a large residential building located in Manhattan. The plaintiff alleged violations of Labor Law Section 200, 240 and 241(6). These claims were alleged against the building owner, management company and various subcontractors at the site. The plaintiff alleged he sustained cervical and lumbar injuries resulting in a cervical fusion and lumbar discectomy. He also allegedly sustained a fracture of the thoracic spine. As a result of the accident, the plaintiff claimed he could not return to work. The settlement demand made before the motions were filed was in excess of $10 million. The court granted our summary judgment motion in its entirely and dismissed all claims against our client on the basis that our client had absolutely no involvement with the accident, having only performed work on the upper floors of the building. The court order also granted the cross motions by the other defendants, resulting in a complete dismissal of all claims against all defendants.

We secured the dismissal of a New York no-fault/personal injury protection (PIP) lost wages suit that carried a potential judgment of more than $1.37 million. The suit commenced in 2014, and over several years, the plaintiff was not cooperative in providing requested information. In 2018, the defense served a 90-day notice on the plaintiff, which advised that we would move for dismissal if the plaintiff did not take action or file a notice of trial within 90 days. The Rockland County Supreme Court Judge recognized that there was no activity in the case for years, but was apprehensive about dismissing the case on the spot. He scheduled an additional hearing and required the plaintiff and new counsel, if retained, to appear to discuss the case status and activity. When they did not appear, Scott successfully moved for dismissal.

We obtained summary judgment in New York County in a case where the plaintiff, a construction laborer, was struck by a rolling dumpster and sustained severe crush injuries to his left foot and leg. The plaintiff, the dumpster company and the subcontractors alleged our general contractor client was responsible for overall site safety. After obtaining billing and work records for the project, the client confirmed that it did not have any involvement in the project, and we moved for summary judgment. After oral argument, the court granted our motion in its entirety and dismissed the case and all cross-claims.

We obtained dismissal of the plaintiff’s complaint and all cross claims against our client, a commercial plumbing contractor, on a motion for summary judgment in a construction defect case. ​The case involved claims by a homeowners association for property damage and replacement costs allegedly in excess of $6 million as a result of construction defects in the design and installation of plumbing, water collection, drainage, grading, and other water runoff and drainage systems. In addition to our client, the named defendants were the project architects, the general contractor, various plumbing, electric, concrete and grading trades, and the water and electric utilities, all of whom asserted cross claims. We were granted summary judgment on grounds that the plaintiff’s breach of contract claim failed due to lack of privity and proof that the plaintiff was not a third-party beneficiary of our subcontract. All claims and cross claims for negligent installation/breach of warranty were dismissed upon proof that our client’s work was performed in accord with project specs and in accord with the applicable building code, and that none of its work contributed to any drainage issues or resulting property damage.

We obtained summary judgment in the Supreme Court of Rockland County, New York. The plaintiff slipped and fell while walking to her mailbox during a severe winter storm in January 2016. The plaintiff initiated a lawsuit against her homeowners association and its snow removal contractor. We moved for summary judgment on behalf of the defendants, asserting that the plaintiff’s claim was barred by the storm-in-progress doctrine. In opposition to our motion, the plaintiff alleged the defendants failed to adequately salt the premises, that the defendants were aware of the icy conditions, and that the storm had ended prior to the plaintiff’s accident. In granting the defendants’ motion for summary judgment, the court found the defendants established that there was a storm in progress at the time of the plaintiff’s accident and that their efforts to prevent ice accumulation and remove snow did not create a hazardous condition. According to the court, the plaintiff’s testimony was self-serving, contradictory and a feigned attempt to create a material issue of fact as to when the storm came to an end.

We were granted partial summary judgment in a Labor Law case venued in the New York Supreme Court, Bronx County. The plaintiff was installing new floors in a large residential building in Manhattan that was owned by our client. The project involved a large-scale renovation of a penthouse and several lower levels. During the renovation, the plaintiff fell through an opening in the floor and sustained injuries to his knee and back. The plaintiff moved for summary judgment under New York Labor Law Section 240(1). We cross-moved for summary judgment, seeking a dismissal of all claims. Our expert concluded that the plaintiff could have avoided the accident and that proper safety equipment was provided. The court denied the plaintiff’s motion and granted our motion in part by dismissing the plaintiff’s Labor Law Section 200 claim and numerous 241(6) industrial code violations.

We prevailed on an appeal before the Appellate Division, Second Department, NYC, reversing a lower court order that denied summary judgment to our client, the owner of a movie theater. The plaintiff was a patron at the movie theater, where he got into a fight with another patron over a parking spot. The plaintiff sued the theater for negligent security. The defense was able to show that there was no notice to the theater because the incident was sudden and unexpected, based on the short duration of the altercation, and the lack of similar prior incidents at the theater. The appellate court granted summary judgment to the theater.  

The plaintiff suffered a perforated uterus following an ambulatory IUD removal surgery that was performed by our Ob/Gyn client. The following day, the plaintiff was readmitted with worsening symptoms and underwent surgery to repair the perforation. The plaintiff alleged that our client was negligent in failing to timely and properly manage the uterine perforation and that the delayed treatment resulted in the plaintiff requiring two open surgeries and ultimately a hysterectomy. With $4.4 million at stake, the jury returned a complete defense verdict.