Lack of Preparation Botches Discovery

In Sapichino v. City of New York, a personal injury action arising from a trip-and-fall on raised city sidewalk flagstones, plaintiff requested that the trial court strike the city's Answer for failing to comply with the court's prior discovery orders. The plaintiff submitted this request six weeks after filing a Note of Issue and Certificate of Readiness, which informs the court that all pre-trial discovery has been completed. The rules of the trial courts state that you cannot seek, except under special circumstances, discovery after you file the Note of Issue and Certificate of Readiness. The problem here was the plaintiff's attorney filed the Note of Issue and Certificate of Readiness and inserted a paragraph in the Certificate that there was still a discovery and inspection response by the city that was outstanding. Plaintiff's counsel argued that this modification was "how [they] do it in Brooklyn" and therefore, plaintiff's right to post Note of Issue discovery. The court stated it knew of no "Brooklyn" exception to the Uniform Court Rules, and denied plaintiff's motion, ruling plaintiff failed to make the required showing under Price v. Brady of "special, unusual or extraordinary circumstances" warranting a deviation from the court rule of no post Note of Issue discovery. The court declined to strike the defendant City's Answer or allow the requested discovery. This case highlights the importance of finding an experienced trial attorney who understands how to comply with procedural rules for all the different courts he or she practices in. www.foleygriffin.com

A Brooklyn Judge's Interpretation of the Sidewalk Law of NYC

Recently, Justice Herbert Kramer of Supreme Court, Kings County, held in the case of MOORE v. NEWPORT ASSOCIATES L.P., that an elevation differential between sidewalk slabs of more than one half inch, caused by a tree root, was actionable and not too small under the new Sidewalk Law of 2003 [Local Law number 49, New York City Code § 7-210]. Furthermore, that the new law placed a duty on a New York City property owner to repair or replace a sidewalk flag that causes a trip hazard because of a grade differential of one half inch or more. http://www.foleygriffin.com/.

Slip & Fall Accidents in New York State

Slip & Fall Accidents: As attorneys practicing in the field of personal injury in New York City and Long Island, we have many clients who have been injured in slip, trip and fall accidents. The first thing that we advise our clients at their initial interview, is the current applicable law in New York State. In order for a victim of a slip, trip and fall accident to be successful, she must submit to the Court that is hearing her case, sufficient evidence to create "a triable issue of fact" of whether or not the defendants either created the defective condition that caused her to fall or had actual or constructive notice of the defective condition. This can be proven by evidence that the defendants actually created the condition, or that they actually knew about the exact condition that made the victim fall. The victim may also prove this "notice" requirement by submitting evidence that an ongoing and recurring dangerous condition existed in the area of the incident, which was routinely left unaddressed by the defendants. This does not have to be the exact condition that the victim fell upon. If the victim does establish a condition was continuously present, the defendants may then be charged with notice of each specific re-occurrence of the hazardous condition. These rules are applied once the victim has successfully identified the proper defendants and followed all the legal requirements to effectively prosecute a civil case against them. As in most areas of the law, there are exceptions to these rules. It takes a cautious practitioner to identify and pursue all the proper parties and arguments in a slip, trip and fall case. www.foleygriffin.com