Downs v. Toth

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of New York

Downs v. Toth

265 A.D.2d 925, 695 N.Y.S.2d 807, 1999 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10061

Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York·Decided October 1, 1999·Published·Cited by 9 cases

Opinion

—Order unanimously reversed on the law without costs and motion granted. Memorandum: Supreme Court erred in denying plaintiffs’ motion for partial summary judgment on the issue of liability. It is well settled that “[a] defense which only alleges that the defendant saw the plaintiffs vehicle [lawfully stopped] * * * that the brakes of the vehicle were applied, but the vehicle nevertheless slid or skidded into the plaintiffs vehicle due to the wet condition of the roadway * * * [is] insufficient to rebut the inference of negligence created by [an] unexplained rear-end collision” (Pincus v Cohen, 198 AD2d 405, 406; see, Schmidt v Edelman, 263 AD2d 502). “When a driver approaches another vehicle from the rear, he is bound to maintain a reasonably safe rate of speed and to * * * compensate for any known adverse road conditions” (Young v City of New York, 113 AD2d 833, 834). (Appeal from Order of Supreme Court, Erie County, Whelan, J. — Summary Judgment.) Present — Pine, J. P., Lawton, Wisner, Hurlbutt and Callahan, JJ.

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—Order unanimously reversed on the law without costs and motion granted. Memorandum: Supreme Court erred in denying plaintiffs’ motion for partial summary judgment on the issue of liability. It is well settled that “[a] defense which only alleges that the defendant saw the plaintiffs vehicle [lawfully stopped] * * * that the brakes of the vehicle were applied, but the vehicle nevertheless slid or skidded into the plaintiffs vehicle due to the wet condition of the roadway * * * [is] insufficient to rebut the inference of negligence created by [an] unexplained rear-end collision” (Pincus v Cohen, 198 AD2d 405, 406; see, Schmidt v Edelman, 263 AD2d 502). “When a driver approaches another vehicle from the rear, he is bound to maintain a reasonably safe rate of speed and to * * * compensate for any known adverse road conditions” (Young v City of New York, 113 AD2d 833, 834). (Appeal from Order of Supreme Court, Erie County, Whelan, J. — Summary Judgment.) Present — Pine, J. P., Lawton, Wisner, Hurlbutt and Callahan, JJ.

Downs v. Toth, 265 A.D.2d 925, 695 N.Y.S.2d 807, 1999 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 10061 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1999).

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