Articles Posted in Court Decisions

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June 11, 2009.

COMMERCIAL LAW, CONSUMER PROTECTION LAW, GOVERNMENT LAW, HEALTH LAW New York v. Smokes-Spirits.com, Inc., No. 92 The Court of Appeals answered the following certified questions from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in the negative: 1) Does New York City have standing to assert its claims under General Business Law section 349?; and 2) may the City assert a common law public nuisance claim that is predicated on N.Y. Public Health Law section 1399-ll? Read more…

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW, FAMILY LAW, GOVERNMENT LAW, JUVENILE LAW Anonymous v. Rochester, No. 81 In an action claiming that the juvenile nighttime curfew adopted by the City of Rochester is unconstitutional, the dismissal of the complaint is reversed, where the curfew violated the substantive due process rights of minors to enjoy freedom of movement and of parents to control the upbringing of their children.

CONSTRUCTION, INJURY AND TORT LAW Cunha v. New York, No. 91 In a personal injury action based on injuries sustained by Plaintiff while working at a roadway excavation, judgment for Plaintiff is reversed where, because New York City was only vicariously liable for violating the provisions of the Labor Law at issue, it was entitled to full common-law indemnification from its codefendant, the party actually responsible for the incident.

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE People v. Decker, No. 102 Defendant’s murder conviction is affirmed where: 1) although there had been a 15-year delay in re-indicting Defendant after the charges were initially dropped, the delay was justified by the witnesses’ fear of testifying against Defendant; and 2) Defendant was not prejudiced by the delay.

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, SENTENCING People v. Mingo, No. 94 Defendant’s rape sentence is vacated where, with the proper foundation, internal documents generated by the District Attorney’s office may support a risk level adjudication, but the trial court failed to require such a foundation, and thus the sentencing enhancement applied by the trial court was in error. ..

INJURY AND TORT LAW, PROPERTY LAW & REAL ESTATE Petrone v. Fernandez, No. 100 In an action claiming that a dog at Defendant apartment complex owner’s property injured Plaintiff, summary judgment for Defendant is affirmed, where Defendant did not own the dog and had no reason to know of the dog’s vicious propensities.
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Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW, GOVERNMENT LAW, SANCTIONS Gollomp v. Spitzer, No. 07-0847 District court judgment dismissing plaintiff’s second amended complaint against various state entities and imposing sanctions on his attorneys is affirmed where: 1) the New York State Unified Court System is an arm of the state, and thus the lawsuit against it is barred as it is entitled to Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity; and 2) the court did not abuse its discretion in imposing sanctions as plaintiff’s counsel acted in bad faith, plaintiff’s claims were frivolous and there was nothing improper in recovering reasonable attorney’s fees from plaintiff’s counsel as a form of sanctions
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Update from the Lexis Alert Service,

June 8, 2009:.

1. People v. Stepteau, 712, 5394/06, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4351; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4138, June 4, 2009, Decided, June 4, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Renee A. White, …

2. People v. Manuel, 709, 1319/08, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4293; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4104, June 2, 2009, Decided, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Daniel P. FitzGerald, …

3. People v. Carter, 693, 4510/07, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4284; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4114, June 2, 2009, Decided, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Arlene R. Silverman, …

4. People v. Santos, 688, 6472/06, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4279; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4122, June 2, 2009, Decided, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Edward J. McLaughlin, …

5. People v. Coleman, 691, 4029/06, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4282; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4106, June 2, 2009, Decided, June 2, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (John Cataldo, J. …

6. People v. Odom, 585, 3211/05, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4272; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4107, June 2, 2009, Decided, June 2, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Gregory Carro, J.), …

7. People v. Bumbray, 686, 4051/03, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4277; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4123, June 2, 2009, Decided, June 2, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Daniel P. FitzGerald, …
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June 3-4, 2009.

CIVIL PROCEDURE, EDUCATION LAW, INJURY AND TORT LAW O’Connor v. Pierson , No. 07-1758 In an action brought by a public school teacher against a school, alleging various state and federal tort claims, district court’s of defendant’s motion for summary judgment on grounds that plaintiff’s claim is barred by res judicata is affirmed where: 1) the state court decision against plaintiff on his intentional infliction claim was decided on the merits and bars his pursuit of the substantive due process claims in federal district court; 2) the parties in the state and federal actions are in privity for purposes of res judicata; and 3) plaintiff had a fair and adequate opportunity to litigate his claims, even if they may have eventually been separated from one another.

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June 1-2, 2009.

CRIMINAL LAW & PROCEDURE, SENTENCING US v. Timewell, No. 07-4587 Sentence for drug crimes and making false statements to federal agents is vacated and remanded where the district court erred in neglecting to answer the question posed by the Crosby remand of defendant’s original sentence of whether the court would have imposed a materially different sentence under the post-Booker sentencing regime based on the circumstances at the time of the original sentence, and this error was not harmless

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June 1, 2009.

CIVIL PROCEDURE, INJURY AND TORT LAW, PER CURIAM, TRANSPORTATION CSX Transp., Inc. v. Hensley, No. 08-1034 In an action brought under the Federal Employers’ Liability Act, based on Plaintiff’s fear of developing cancer due to asbestos exposure, judgment for Plaintiff is reversed where the trial court denied an instruction that Plaintiff must have a “genuine and serious fear” to recover damages, because that instruction was required by the Court’s prior decision in Ayers v. Norfolk & Western R. Co., 538 U.S. 135 (2003). Read more…

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May 25-29, 2009.

U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, May 27, 2009 Pyke v. Cuomo, No. 07-0334 District court’s grant of summary judgment to defendants on plaintiffs’ claim that defendants’ response to a period of violent unrest on an Indian reservation violated their equal protection rights is affirmed where: 1) plaintiffs failed to show that defendants’ actions constituted an express racial classification; and 2) plaintiffs failed to provide sufficient evidence of racially discriminatory intent and impact.

U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals, May 29, 2009 Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Co. v. Bridgeport Port Auth., No. 08-3886 District court judgment declaring a fee imposed on ferry passengers unconstitutional and enjoining collection of the fee until revised is affirmed where: 1) the existing fee violated the Commerce Clause as defendant failed to show that using a portion of the passenger fees to pay for services was based on a fair approximation of the ferry passengers’ use; and 2) the fee violated the Tonnage Clause as it was used for the impermissible purpose of raising general revenues and for projects which did not benefit the ferry passengers.

U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, May 28, 2009 Am. Atheists, Inc. v. Detroit, No. 07-2398 In an Establishment Clause challenge to a city’s building refurbishment program in which religious organizations were allowed to participate, judgment for Plaintiff is reversed, where the program allocated generally available benefits on a neutral basis and without a hidden agenda, and thus did not have the effect of advancing religion.
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May 25-29, 2009.

U.S. Supreme Court, May 26, 2009 Haywood v. Drown, No. 07-10374 In a 42 U.S.C. section 1983 action by a prisoner, judgment for Defendant-Officers is reversed where Correction Law section 24, as applied to Section 1983 claims, violates the Supremacy Clause, because New York’s policy of shielding correctional officers from liability for conduct performed in the scope of their employment is contrary to Congress’s judgment that all persons who violate federal rights while acting under color of state law shall be held liable for damages.

U.S. Supreme Court, May 26, 2009 Montejo v. Louisiana, No. 07-1529 Capital murder conviction is vacated, where Michigan v. Jackson, 475 U.S. 625 (1986), is overruled, because requiring an “initial invocation” of the right to counsel in order to trigger the Jackson presumption might work in states that require an indigent defendant formally to request counsel before an appointment is made, but not in more than half the states that appoint counsel without request from the defendant. .

U.S. Supreme Court, May 26, 2009 Abuelhawa v. US, No. 08-192 Drug distribution conviction is reversed and the case remanded, where Defendant’s drug purchases from a third party over the phone constituted misdemeanors, because using a telephone to make a misdemeanor drug purchase does not “facilitate” felony drug distribution in violation of 18 U.S.C. section 843(b).
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Update from the Lexis Alert Service,

May 26 & 29, 2009:.

1. People v. Rodriguez, 614, 4545N/05, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4005; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3802, May 21, 2009, Decided, May 21, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Michael J. Obus, …

2. People v. Reyes, 618, 3444/05, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4008; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3804, May 21, 2009, Decided, May 21, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (William A. Wetzel, …

3. People v. Grant, 610, 871/06, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4001; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3800, May 21, 2009, Decided, May 21, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (John Cataldo, J.), …

4. People v. Rincon, 623, 1187/03, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4012; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3801, May 21, 2009, Decided, May 21, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment of resentence, Supreme Court, New York County (Ruth Pickholz, J.), …

5. People v. Guardino, 5053, 3491/04, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 3995; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3817, May 21, 2009, Decided, May 21, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Robert H. Straus, …

6. People v. Rodriguez, 615, 4545N/05, SUPREME COURT OF NEW YORK, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT, 2009 NY Slip Op 4006; 2009 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3807, May 21, 2009, Decided, May 21, 2009, Entered, THE LEXIS PAGINATION OF THIS DOCUMENT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING RELEASE OF THE FINAL PUBLISHED VERSION., THIS OPINION IS UNCORRECTED AND SUBJECT TO REVISION BEFORE PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL REPORTS.
The People of the State …
Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (William A. Wetzel, …
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