Tenant Not Responsible for Injuries to Visitor Who Was Injured in Building's Common Area
LVT Number: #33540
A visitor was injured when she tripped and fell on the exterior staircase leading from the front porch of landlord's two-family home while leaving after a visit to the tenant who lived on the second floor. Landlords lived on the first floor. The visitor sued landlords, who in turn brought a third-party action against tenant, seeking indemnification and contribution to the damages. Tenant claimed that he wasn't responsible for the visitor's injuries and asked the court to dismiss landlord's claim against him. The court ruled for tenant.
Landlords appealed and lost. A tenant's common-law duty to maintain a premises in a reasonably safe condition is limited to those areas that he occupies and controls, or makes special use of. Here, tenant showed that he had no duty to maintain the common area where the accident occurred.
Luque-Gallego v. Escobar: Index No. 713736/19, App. No. 2023-07922, 2024 NY Slip Op 06621 (App. Div. 2 Dept.; 12/24/24; Connolly, JP, Ford, Love, McCormack, JJ)