Wade Clark Mulcahy LLP

<p style="text-align: justify;">As New York prepares itself for another season of winter, the Second Department hands landowners, tenants in possession, and even snow removal companies their first victory of the season by reversing the trial court’s order and granting defendant’s motion to dismiss in this slip and fall case.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">March 14, 2017 brought a winter storm that had carried on into the night, producing 6-12 inches of snow. On the morning of March 15, 2017, defendants had already begun the grueling process of removing snow and ice from public areas on the premises. However, the plaintiff David <em><a href="https://www.wcmlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Henenlotter.pdf">Henenlotter</a></em>, was the unlucky pedestrian who discovered defendants had had not fully ameliorated the hazards caused by the winter weather, when he slipped and fell on the snow and ice at approximately 6:00 a.m.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The well-settled Storm-in-Progress rule relieves a property owner, a tenant in possession, and even a snow removal contractor of liability for accidents caused by snow or ice that accumulates during a storm until an adequate period of time following the cessation of the storm to allow an opportunity to remedy the hazards. <em>Balagyozyan v. Federal Realty L.P</em>., 191 AD3d 749, 751. However, if one elects to engage in snow removal during “a storm in progress”, they are required to do so with reasonable care to avoid creating a hazard or exacerbating the natural hazard caused by the snow and ice.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The Second Department did not articulate how much time is “adequate” in the eyes of the law, but rather, relied on plaintiff’s own concession that plaintiff could not say that defendants had sufficient time to clear the snow and ice after the storm had passed. The Court determined that was enough to decide that plaintiff failed to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether the defendants either created or exacerbated the condition that caused plaintiff to slip and fall.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Thanks to Kara M. Nelson for her contribution to this post. Please contact <a href="mailto:Haquino@wcmlaw.com">Heather Aquin</a>o with any questions.</p>