CASE LAW DEVELOPMENTS Court of Appeals Divides on Whether Directed Verdict Should Have Been Granted on Issue of Ownership of Dam in Negligence and Wrongful Death Action Was Ownership Issue Established as a Matter of Law? In Suzanne P. v. Joint Bd. of Directors of Erie-Wyoming County Soil Conservation Dist., 2024 N.Y. Slip Op. 00159 … Continued

CASE LAW DEVELOPMENTS DOCCS Properly Withheld Documents Prepared by Counsel for the Parole Board in Response to FOIL Request Court of Appeals Holds There to Be No Per Se Rule That Training Materials Cannot Be Protected In Appellate Advocs. v. N.Y. State Dep’t of Corr. & Cmty. Supervision, 2023 N.Y. Slip Op. 06466 (Dec. 19, … Continued

CASE LAW DEVELOPMENTS On Certified Question, New York State Court of Appeals Rules That Assignment Was Ineffective Because of Failure to Provide Notice to the Insurer Thus, Trust-Assignee Had No Contractual Standing to Sue the Insurer In Brettler v. Allianz Life Ins. Co. of N. Am., 2023 N.Y. Slip Op. 05958 (Nov. 20, 2023), the … Continued

CPLR AMENDMENT Amendment to CPLR 2106 Permits Any Person to Submit Affirmation Eases Burden in Obtaining Statements, Particularly From Witnesses Located Outside of the State Obtaining witness statements can be cumbersome and difficult at times, especially where the witness is located outside of the state but in the United States. Specifically, a certificate of conformity … Continued

CASE LAW DEVELOPMENTS Second Department Affirms Denial of Defendants’ Motion to Compel Production of Arons’ Authorization to Conduct Interview on Causation Court Refuses to Extend Arons Ruling In Arons v. Jutkowitz, 9 N.Y.3d 393, 409 (2007), the Court of Appeals considered the privacy issues raised by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), holding … Continued