Child Fell from Fourth-Floor Window

Tenant sued landlord for negligence after two-year-old child fell from apartment window and was injured. The court ruled for tenant without a trial, and landlord appealed. Landlord claimed there were factual questions requiring a trial. The appeals court ruled for landlord, and reopened the case. Landlord had pleaded guilty in a related criminal proceeding. But it was unclear whether the guilty plea was due to landlord's not complying with window guard regulations prior to the accident, or to not complying with Health Department orders directing landlord to remedy the condition of the windows after the accident. Landlord also claimed that another child might have caused the accident. But window guards were required in the apartment where children 10 years or younger lived. The presence of another child at the scene of the accident wasn't so extraordinary or unforeseeable that it could be construed as a superseding cause of the accident.

Cunningham v. L.P.T.G. Farragut Realty Corp.: 606 NYS2d 776 (1/24/94) (App. Div. 2 Dept.; Bracken, JP, Sullivan, Miller, Lawrence, JJ)