Landlord Didn't Cause or Know About Mold in Tenant's Apartment

Tenant sued landlord for negligence. Tenant claimed she was injured by a mold condition in her apartment. Landlord asked the court to dismiss the case without a trial. Landlord claimed it had no notice of any mold condition. The court and appeals court ruled for landlord. Landlord knew about a brown discoloration spot and surrounding wetness on a wall in the apartment, as well as a small leak in the steam pipe behind the wall. But this didn't amount to notice of the potential for the mold growth that tenant claimed caused her injuries. Although tenant's expert stated his opinion that landlord had improperly removed drywall while repairing the steam pipe, causing a dangerous release of mold spores, he didn't state how the wall should have been removed. And while tenant's expert also stated that landlord's delay in repairing the steam pipe caused a dangerous growth of mold spores, he didn't show how there could be such growth when the building's steam was off during the entire period of the delay.

Litwack v. Plaza Realty Investors, Inc.: NYLJ, 5/7/07, p. 25, col. 2 (App. Div. 1 Dept.; Tom, JP, Andrias, Saxe, Marlow, Nardelli, JJ)