Litigation

Too Many Auto Accidents Stop Causation Chain (NY)

In Smith v. Gray, 2022 WL 1418973 (2d Cir. 2022), the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a judgment of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, and the Court found that a physician’s expert report needs to be specific and undisputed if a defendant puts forth persuasive evidence that the plaintiff’s injury is related to a preexisting condition in order for a...Read More

Common Owners Get Hit With Joint Liability (PA)

In a recent case from the Eastern District of PA, Snyder v. Hunt, the court granted plaintiff’s appeal for a directed verdict after finding plaintiff established a prima facie case of premises liability against common landowners. Evidence provided multiple owners of a driveway extending between two rows of houses and enjoyed an easement over the driveway in common with other abutting owners,...Read More

An Arbitrator’s Award In Excess Of Policy Limit Constitutes Grounds For Vacatur (NY)

New York Appellate Court holds once an insurer has paid the full monetary limits set forth in its insurance policy, the insurer’s duties to the policyholder under the policy cease. Accordingly, where an arbitrator’s award directs payment in excess of the monetary limit of a policy of insurance, the Appellate Division, First Department has held that the award is subject to vacatur. In Allstate...Read More

Be Careful With That “Reply All” Button . . . First Department Finds That A Series Of Emails Can Constitute An Enforceable Settlement Agreement

In Matter of Philadelphia Ins. Indem. Co. v. Kendall, 197 A.D.3d 75 (1st Dep’t 2021), the First Department found that an email exchange constituted a valid settlement agreement. In Kendall, the parties had presented their cases to an arbitrator. After the arbitration, but before the arbitrator rendered his decision, the parties settled the case for $400,000. The arbitrator then informed the...Read More

Attorney Who Failed To Pay Uncooperative Experts Found To Have Breached Contract (NY)

Recently, in the Supreme Court, New York County case Tiago v. Trachtman plaintiffs, both psychologists retained to be expert witnesses by the defendant, were awarded summary judgment as to liability under the breach of contract claims only and successful in severing and dismissing the defendant’s counterclaims. Contemporaneously, the Court denied the defendant’s cross-motion for summary...Read More

Hope And Speculation Is Insufficient To Defeat Pre-Discovery Summary Judgment Motion (NY)

In Mauro v. City of New York, the Second Department recently addressed whether the defendants’ pre-discovery motions for summary judgment were premature. Plaintiffs in that case were involved in a motor vehicle accident when they came in contact with “an opening in the roadway caused by a missing manhole cover.” Defendants Keyspan Corporation and National Grid USA moved for summary judgment,...Read More

PA Appellate Court Finds that You’re “At Work” While on Your Commute

In Bark v. Sooner Steel LLC, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court held that a worker was acting within the course and scope of his employment while commuting home from work. The court emphasized that whether someone is acting within the course and scope of his or her employment is a fact specific inquiry. In Bark, the claimant suffered severe injuries in a motor vehicle accident that occurred...Read More

All Risk Insurance Policy Does Not Cover Restaurant From Covid Loss (PA)

In a recent case from the Eastern District of PA, Humans & Res., LLC v. Firstline Nat’l Ins Co., the court granted the defendant’s summary judgment against the plaintiff who sought coverage under an all-risk property policy. Finding that COVID-19 related loss did not fall under an all-risk property policy and did not give rise to the expectation that it would.  The plaintiff in the case...Read More

What Is The Deal With These Legal Bills? (NY)

Jerry Seinfeld was just involved in a trademark lawsuit stemming from his Netflix series, “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee,” which is pretty funny, and I’m sure Jerry would concede, a fairly transparent excuse for Jerry to hang out with his comic buddies and drive around in fancy cars.   I mean, that’s basically the title of the show.   Not a bad day’s work....Read More

“Quick Fix” Leads To Liability If Not Done Properly (PA)

In a recent Eastern District of PA case, Zurich Am. Ins. Co. v. A.T. Chadwick Co., Inc., the court denied a third-party defendant’s motion for summary judgment in a construction defect case. The court found that jury could assign a percentage of the blame to the third-party defendant for a “quick fix” gone bad. In this case, a homeowner had a broken pike in their home which leaked and sagged...Read More