Was Landlord Responsible for Cabinet Falling on Tenant?

March 31, 2010

LVT Number: #22586

Tenant sued landlord for negligence, after she was struck by cabinets that fell off her kitchen wall. Landlord claimed that it wasn’t responsible, and the court dismissed the case without a trial. Tenant appealed, and the case was reopened. Landlord claimed in pretrial questioning that it had no notice of any dangerous condition. But landlord had no personal knowledge of how the cabinets were installed. Since landlord didn’t know if the cabinets had been properly installed, there was a question as to whether landlord created a defective condition.

Tenant sued landlord for negligence, after she was struck by cabinets that fell off her kitchen wall. Landlord claimed that it wasn’t responsible, and the court dismissed the case without a trial. Tenant appealed, and the case was reopened. Landlord claimed in pretrial questioning that it had no notice of any dangerous condition. But landlord had no personal knowledge of how the cabinets were installed. Since landlord didn’t know if the cabinets had been properly installed, there was a question as to whether landlord created a defective condition. A trial was needed to determine the facts.

Frees v. Frank & Walter Eberhard LP No. 1: 2010 N.Y. Slip Op. 01898, 2010 WL 815632 (3/11/10) (App. Div. 1 Dept.; Mazzarelli, JP, Saxe, Moskowitz, Acosta, Renwick, JJ)

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