Landlord Not Liable for Lead Poisoning if No Notice of Child

Facts: Subtenant sued landlord for damages after her child developed lead poisoning. The child had swallowed paint chips and dust from tenant's apartment. NYC law requires landlords to remove or cover paint containing specified hazardous levels of lead in any apartment in which a child under 7 years old lives. A city inspection confirmed that the level of lead in the apartment was dangerous. Landlord claimed it didn't know there was a child living in the apartment. Tenant claimed that landlord had an absolute legal responsibility for keeping apartments free of lead paint. The court ruled for tenant on this issue, and landlord appealed. Court: Landlord wins. Landlord's liability under the lead paint law isn't absolute. Tenants must prove that landlord actually knew, or should have known, that a child was living in an apartment. In this case, neither tenant nor subtenant ever advised landlord of the sublet. The case was sent back for a trial to determine whether landlord knew that a child under age 7 was living in tenant's apartment.

Juarez v. Wavecrest Management Team Ltd.: NYLJ, p. 25, col. 1 (7/3/96) (Ct. App. NY; Kaye, CJ, Simons, Titone, Bellacosa, Smith, Levine, Ciparick, JJ)