Newman v. RCPI Landmark Properties, LLC — 28 N.Y.3d 1032

Majority

p. 1032

[65 NE3d 698, 42 NYS3d 668]

George Newman et al., Appellants, v RCPI Landmark Properties, LLC, et al., Respondents.

Argued October 18, 2016;

decided November 17, 2016

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APPEARANCES OF COUNSEL

Napoli Shkolnik PLLC, New York City (Annie E. Causey and Joseph P Napoli of counsel), for appellants.

Ahmuty, Demers & McManus, Albertson (Glenn A. Kaminska and Nicholas M. Cardascia of counsel), for respondents.

Margaret G. Klein, Defense Association of New York, Inc., New York City (Andrew Zajac, Dawn C. DeSimone, Roña L. Platt, Brendan T. Fitzpatrick and Jonathan T. Uejio of counsel), and McGaw, Alventosa & Zajac, Jericho, for Defense Association of New York, Inc., amicus curiae.

OPINION OF THE COURT

Memorandum.

The order of the Appellate Division should be reversed, with costs, and defendants’ motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint denied.

This is an ordinary negligence case. Questions regarding proximate cause generally are for a trier of fact (see Derdiarian v Felix Contr. Corp., 51 NY2d 308 , 315 [1980], rearg denied 52 NY2d 784 [1980]). Defendants’ own submissions do not establish as a matter of law that their alleged negligence was

p. 1034

not a proximate cause of the accident (see generally Zuckerman v City of New York, 49 NY2d 557 , 562 [1980]). Viewed “ ‘in the light most favorable to [plaintiffs,] the non-moving parties]’ ” (Vega v Restani Constr. Corp., 18 NY3d 499 , 503 [2012], quoting Ortiz v Varsity Holdings, LLC, 18 NY3d 335 , 339 [2011]), those submissions leave open the possibility that some negligence on defendants’ part contributed to the injuries incurred by George Newman (plaintiff) when he descended from the loading dock in question, and that there is a causal link between that alleged negligence and plaintiff’s fall.

Chief Judge DiFiore and Judges Pigott, Rivera, Abdus-Salaam, Stein, Fahey and Garcia concur.

Order reversed, with costs, and defendants’ motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint denied, in a memorandum.

Cases cited

Derdiarian v. Felix Contracting Corp. 51 NY2d 308 N.Y. 1980-11-20 at 315 p. 1033
Zuckerman v. City of New York 49 NY2d 557 N.Y. 1980-04-01 at 562 p. 1034
Vega v. Restani Construction Corp. 18 NY3d 499 N.Y. 2012-02-16 at 503 p. 1034
Ortiz v. Varsity Holdings, LLC 18 NY3d 335 N.Y. 2011-12-20 at 339 p. 1034