PMT Defeats Summary Judgment Motion in Manhattan Sidewalk Trip-and-Fall Case

By Lawrence J. Buchman and Shlomit Buchinsky.

Pillinger Miller Tarallo, LLP secured a favorable result in Supreme Court, New York County, successfully defeating the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment in a sidewalk trip-and-fall action involving allegations of a dangerous sidewalk defect.

The plaintiff alleged she was injured after tripping on a raised and uneven sidewalk abutting a Manhattan property. PMT represented the store located at the premises, the building owner, and the property’s management company.

The plaintiff moved for summary judgment on liability, arguing that defendants owed a non-delegable duty to maintain the sidewalk and failed to discover and remedy the alleged defect. PMT opposed the motion, arguing that the plaintiff was solely responsible for her accident, that the alleged defect was trivial or non-existent, and that, at a minimum, factual disputes required resolution by a jury rather than the Court. PMT further supported its opposition with an affidavit from a forensic video expert who analyzed surveillance footage of the incident.

The Court agreed that multiple factors remained for trial. Among other things, the Court found questions regarding whether defendants had actual or constructive notice of the alleged sidewalk condition. The Court also noted that the photographs submitted by the plaintiff were taken at extremely close range and that a reasonable jury could conclude the alleged height differential was trivial.

Additionally, testimony from the building’s property manager established that the sidewalks were inspected regularly and that no dangerous conditions had been observed and no complaints had been received before the accident. The Court found that this testimony further supported the existence of factual disputes concerning notice.

Importantly, the Court also held that issues of comparative negligence remained for the jury, observing that the plaintiff’s own submissions suggested she may have been distracted while conversing with a friend and pulling a wagon immediately before the fall.

As a result, the Court denied the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment in its entirety, preserving defendants’ liability defenses and comparative fault arguments for trial.

This decision highlights PMT’s continued success in defending premises liability claims through strategic motion practice, expert analysis, and the development of factual defenses that position cases for favorable resolution.

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Should you have any questions, please call our office at (914) 703-6300 or contact:

Marc H. Pillinger, Executive Partner
mpillinger@pmtlawfirm.com

Jeffrey T. Miller, Executive Partner
jmiller@pmtlawfirm.com

Jeffrey D. Schulman, Executive Partner
jschulman@pmtlawfirm.com

Richard J. Freire, Executive Partner
rfreire@pmtlawfirm.com