Java v. 25 Park LLC

2025 NY Slip Op 32160(U)

• Court: New York Supreme Court, New York County
• Decided: June 17, 2025
• Docket: Index No. 153961/2022
• Status: Unpublished

Opinion

Java v 25 Park LLC 2025 NY Slip Op 32160(U) June 17, 2025 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: Index No. 153961/2022 Judge: Mary V. Rosado Cases posted with a "30000" identifier, i.e., 2013 NY Slip Op 30001(U), are republished from various New York State and local government sources, including the New York State Unified Court System's eCourts Service. This opinion is uncorrected and not selected for official publication. FILED: NEW YORK COUNTY CLERK 06/18/2025 04:30 PM INDEX NO. 153961/2022 NYSCEF DOC. NO. 225 RECEIVED NYSCEF: 06/18/2025

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK NEW YORK COUNTY

PRESENT: HON. MARY V. ROSADO PART 33M Justice ------------------X INDEX NO. 153961/2022 JEFFERSON BUSTAMANTE JAVA, MOTION DATE 08/02/2024 Plaintiff, MOTION SEQ. NO. 002 -v- 25 PARK LLC,25 PARK CORP., WILLIAMS EQUITIES LLC,COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL NY LLC,COLLIERS TRI- STATE MANAGEMENT LLC,NEUEHOUSE LLC,NEUEHOUSE MADISON SQUARE LLC,NEUEHOUSE DECISION + ORDER ON NEW YORK HQ LLC,NEUEHOUSE MANAGEMENT MOTION LLC,FOTOGRAFISKA NEUEHOUSE, INC.,CULTUREWORKS, INC.,KAWNEER COMPANY, INC.,KILROY ARCHITECTURAL WINDOWS, INC.,

Defendant.

------------------X 25 PARK LLC, 25 PARK CORP., WILLIAMS EQUITIES LLC, Third-Party COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL NY LLC, COLLIERS TRI-STATE Index No. 595014/2023 MANAGEMENT LLC

Plaintiff,

-against-

CONTINENTAL WINDOW CLEANING INC.

Defendant. ------------------X 25 PARK LLC, 25 PARK CORP., COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL Second Third-Party NY LLC, COLLIERS TRI-STATE MANAGEMENT LLC Index No. 595457/2023

KAWNEER COMPANY, INC., KILROY ARCHITECTURAL WINDOWS, INC.

Defendant. ------------------X 25 PARK LLC, 25 PARK CORP., WILLIAMS EQUITIES LLC, Third Third-Party COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL NY LLC, COLLIERS TRI-STATE Index No. 595634/2023

153981/2022 BUSTAMANTE JAVA, JEFFERSON vs. 25 PARK LLC ET AL Page 1 of4 Motion No. 002

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MANAGEMENT LLC

KILROY ARCHITECTURAL WINDOWS

Defendant. -------------------X The following e-filed documents, listed by NYSCEF document number (Motion 002) 102, 103, 104, 105, 106,107,108,109,110,111,112,113,114,115,116,117,144,146,147,157,158,197,198,199,200, 201,202,203,204,205,206,220 were read on this motion to/for JUDGMENT-SUMMARY

Upon the foregoing documents, and after a final submission date of April 29, 2025,

Defendants Neuehouse LLC, Neuehouse Madison Square LLC, Neuehouse New York HQ LLC,

Neuehouse Management LLC, Neuehouse, Inc., Fotografiska Neuehouse, Inc., and Cultureworks,

Inc. (collectively "Neuehouse") motion for summary judgment dismissing Plaintiff Jefferson

Bustamante Jaya's ("Plaintiff'') Complaint and all cross-claims asserted against them is granted.

I. Background

Non-party Metropolitan Window Washing ("Metropolitan") employed Plaintiff as a

window washer. On April 13, 2022, Plaintiff was washing a window on the 11 th floor of the

building located at 104 East 25th Street, New York, New York (the "Building") when the top sash

of the window fell and severed Plaintiff's finger. Metropolitan was a subcontractor of third-party

defendant Continental Window Cleaning, Inc. ("Continental"). Continental was in turn contracted

by the owner of the Building, Defendant 25 Park LLC (NYSCEF Doc. 203). Neuehouse was a

tenant on the 11 th floor of the Building where Plaintiff was injured.

Neuehouse now seeks summary judgment dismissing Plaintiff's Complaint and all cross

claims asserted against it. Plaintiff does not oppose (NYSCEF Doc. 146) and therefore the motion

for summary judgment dismissing Plaintiffs Complaint as alleged against Neuehouse is granted.

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The only parties to oppose are 25 Park LLC, 25 Park Corp., Williams Equities LLC, Colliers

International NY LLC, and Colliers Tri-State Management LLC (collectively "Owner

Defendants"). These parties asserted cross-claims for contribution and contractual indemnification

against Neuehouse.

II. Discussion

"Summary judgment is a drastic remedy, to be granted only where the moving party has

tendered sufficient evidence to demonstrate the absence of any material issues of fact." (Vega v

Restani Const. Corp., 18 NY3d 499,503 [2012]). The moving party's "burden is a heavy one and

on a motion for summary judgment, facts must be viewed in the light most favorable to the non-

moving party." (Jacobsen v New York City Health and Hosps. Corp., 22 NY3d 824, 833 [2014]).

Once this showing is made, the burden shifts to the party opposing the motion to produce

evidentiary proof, in admissible form, sufficient to establish the existence of material issues of fact

which require a trial (See e.g., Zuckerman v City ofNew York, 49 NY2d 557, 562 [1980]).

Neuehouse's motion is granted. The deposition testimony and lease provisions make clear

that Neuehouse had no responsibility for maintaining or cleaning the windows in the Premises (see

NYSCEF Doc. 201 at 18, 53-54; see also NYSCEF Doc. 205). In fact, the Lease explicitly states

that "Landlord shall maintain in working order and repair .... existing skylights and exterior

windows" (NYSCEF Doc. 205 at 1 87). There has been no evidence proffered that Neuehouse had

a duty to maintain the windows or that it was in anyway negligent with respect to the window that

caused Plaintiff's accident. The mere speculation that a Neuehouse employee could have the

allegedly defective condition by simply opening or closing a window is insufficient to defeat

summary judgment (see generally Schloss v Steinberg, 100 AD3d 4 76 [1st Dept 2012] [speculation

and conjecture are insufficient to defeat summary judgment]). Thus, the undisputed evidence

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having shown that Neuehouse was not responsible for inspecting, maintaining, or repairing the

window which caused Plaintiff's injury, and there being no evidence that Neuehouse's negligence

was responsible for creating the allegedly defective window, Neuehouse's motion dismissing all

claims and cross-claims asserted against it is granted.

Accordingly, it is hereby,

ORDERED that Defendants Neuehouse LLC, Neuehouse Madison Square LLC,

Neuehouse New York HQ LLC, Neuehouse Management LLC, Neuehouse, Inc., Fotografiska

Neuehouse, Inc., and Cultureworks, Inc. motion for summary judgment dismissing all claims and

crossclaims asserted against it is granted in its entirety, and Plaintiff's claims and all cross-claims

asserted against Defendants Neuehouse LLC, Neuehouse Madison Square LLC, Neuehouse New

York HQ LLC, Neuehouse Management LLC, Neuehouse, Inc., Fotografiska Neuehouse, Inc.,

and Cultureworks, Inc. are hereby dismissed; and it is further

ORDERED that within ten days of entry, counsel for Defendants Neuehouse LLC,

Neuehouse Madison Square LLC, Neuehouse New York HQ LLC, Neuehouse Management LLC,

Neuehouse, Inc., Fotografiska Neuehouse, Inc., and Cultureworks, Inc. shall serve a copy ofthis

Decision and Order, with notice of entry, on all parties via NYSCEF.

This constitutes the Decision and Order of the Court.

N. MARY V. ROSADO, J.S.C.

CHECK ONE: CASE DISPOSED x NON-FINAL DISPOSITION

x GRANTED □ DENIED GRANTED IN PART □ OTHER APPLICATION: SETTLE ORDER SUBMIT ORDER

CHECK IF APPROPRIATE: INCLUDES TRANSFER/REASSIGN FIDUCIARY APPOINTMENT □ REFERENCE

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