Defendants’ Conflicting Accounts Held Fatal To Their Summary Judgment Motion (NY)
When moving for summary judgment in a New York negligence action, the moving defendant has the burden of establishing, prima facie, that he or she was not at fault in the happening of accident. Evidence of fault on the part of the defendant can defeat the motion and can come from the defendant’s own proofs. For example, in Charles v. American Dream Coaches, a vehicle operated by plaintiff...Read More
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Don’t Drag Your Feet And Assume That NY Courts Will Grant Extensions Of Time
When requesting an extension of time, clients and attorneys must be cautious in assuming that New York courts will unilaterally grant their requests simply because they think they deserve one. In LaSalle Bank, NA v. Ferrari, the plaintiff filed a mortgage foreclosure action against the defendant in August 2008. In late 2014, plaintiff moved for an order of reference and defendant cross moved...Read More
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Context Important in ERISA Dispute Over Unclear Language (PA)
On November 16, 2022 in a lawsuit entitled, Frietas, et al. v. Geisinger Health Plan, et al., No. 4:20-CV-01236, Third Circuit Chief Judge Brann disposed of a proposed class action alleging that Geisinger Health Plan (“GHP”) illegally tried to recoup payments from plan users following their injury settlements, finding that documents uncovered through discovery explicitly gave the company the...Read More
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PA Appeals Court Holds that Statute of Repose Cannot be Tolled by Repairs
In Venema v. Moser Builders, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania (“Superior Court”) upheld the trial court’s decision to dismiss the plaintiff’s complaint with prejudice. The Superior Court affirmed the plaintiff’s claims were time-barred by the 12-year Statute of Repose for actions concerning construction defects. The subject premises in this case is located in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania...Read More
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Appeals Court Remands Dispute Due to Unknown Facts Concerning Valuation of Damages (PA)
The Superior Court of Pennsylvania recently held that a property insurance dispute concerning “soft costs” following water damage must, in the absence of policy definitions, be resolved with the trial court delineating whether specific expenses fall into the category of “rental loss,” “extra expense,” “soft cost,” or another type of claim. In Post River Rd., LLC v. Aspen Specialty Ins. Co.,...Read More
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Broad Policy Exclusions Are Vulnerable to Reasonable Expectations (PA)
On November 2, 2022, in Atain Insurance Company v. V2 Properties LLC, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Judge Padova issued a memorandum decision denying Atain Insurance Company’s (“Atain”) motion for judgment on the pleadings, arguing that its policy issued to V2 Properties (“V2”) provided no coverage for losses sustained in connection with a personal injury judgment entered against V2....Read More
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No Duty Of Care While Freezing Rain Still In The Air (PA)
A Pennsylvania trial court granted summary judgment in a premises liability case where the plaintiff slipped and fell during an ongoing storm of rain and freezing rain, thereby reaffirming that a property owner has no obligation to remove all of the ice from its premises while the icy precipitation continued to fall. In Nunez v. Johnson & Johnson, Henry Nunez was employed by Allied...Read More
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Make Sure Your Expert Backs Up Their Findings (NY)
In Augustus v. Negron, 2022 NY Slip Op 06255 (2nd Dep’t, Nov 9, 2022), plaintiff brought suit after a motor vehicle accident. Pursuant to New York State Insurance Law, a plaintiff has to establish that he/she suffered a serious injury pursuant to Insurance Law § 5102(d). A failure to do so in motor vehicle accident means the plaintiff would not be able to sustain a lawsuit in New York....Read More
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