Landlord Not Responsible for Trip and Fall from Elevator

March 31, 2011

LVT Number: #23265

Tenant sued landlord and elevator company for negligence after she tripped and fell while exiting an elevator in her building. The court granted requests by landlord and the elevator company to dismiss the case without a trial. Tenant appealed and lost. Neither landlord nor the elevator company had any notice of any prior problems with the elevator. Although there had been a misleveling problem with the elevator almost three weeks before tenant's accident, the condition had been resolved, and a different condition was observed the day after the accident.

Tenant sued landlord and elevator company for negligence after she tripped and fell while exiting an elevator in her building. The court granted requests by landlord and the elevator company to dismiss the case without a trial. Tenant appealed and lost. Neither landlord nor the elevator company had any notice of any prior problems with the elevator. Although there had been a misleveling problem with the elevator almost three weeks before tenant's accident, the condition had been resolved, and a different condition was observed the day after the accident. Tenant's fall also could have been caused by a misstep on her part.

Meza v. 509 Owners LLC: NYLJ, 3/7/11, p. 18, col. 5 (App. Div. 1 Dept.; Saxe, JP, Sweeny, Catterson, Freedman, Roman, JJ)

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