Kirschbaum v. Brookdale Hospital & Medical Center

147 A.D.2d 530, 537 N.Y.S.2d 832, 1989 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 1623
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York·Decided February 14, 1989·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

— In a medical malpractice action, (1) the defendant Norman Johanson appeals from so much of an order of the Supreme Court, Kings County (Pizzuto, J.), dated September 21, 1987, as (a) granted those branches of the plaintiff’s motion which were to dismiss the affirmative defense of the Statute of Limitations interposed in his answer and for an extension of time to file a late notice of medical malpractice action, and deemed an amended notice of medical malpractice action to be timely served and (b) denied his cross motion to dismiss the complaint as against him based upon the plaintiff’s failure to comply with CPLR 3012-a and CPLR 3406 (a), and (2) the defendants Brookdale Hospital and Medical Center, Hong Kim, Jack Adler, and Douglass H. Greenfield appeal from so much of the same order as denied their cross motion to dismiss the complaint as against them based upon the plaintiff’s failure to comply with CPLR 3012-a.

Ordered that the order is modified, on the law by (1) adding to the second decretal paragraph thereof, after the word "granted”, the words "with respect to the defendants Brook-dale Hospital and Medical Center, Kim, Adler and Greenfield but is denied with respect to the defendant Johanson”, (2) adding to the third decretal paragraph thereof, after the word "granted”, the words "with respect to the defendants Brook-dale Hospital and Medical Center, Kim, Adler and Greenfield, but is denied with respect to the defendant Johanson”, and (3) by deleting the fourth decretal paragraph thereof and by substituting in its place the following provision: "ORDERED, that the branch of the defendant Johanson’s cross motion [531] which was to dismiss the complaint as against him based upon the plaintiff’s failure to comply with CPLR 3406 (a) is granted, and the branch of the defendant Johanson’s cross motion which was to dismiss the complaint as against him based upon the plaintiff’s failure to comply with CPLR 3012-a is dismissed as academic”; as so modified, the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from without costs or disbursements, and the matter is remitted to the Supreme Court, Kings County, to afford the plaintiff an opportunity, if she he so advised, to submit further proof in accordance herewith and for a new determination of the cross motion of the defendants Brookdale Hospital and Medical Center, Kim, Adler and Greenfield to dismiss the action as against them based on the plaintiff’s failure to comply with CPLR 3012-a; and it is further,

Ordered that the plaintiff’s time to submit any further proof is extended until 45 days after service upon her of a copy of this decision and order with notice of entry and the defendants Brookdale Hospital and Medical Center, Kim, Adler and Greenfield shall submit their reply papers within 20 days of service upon them of the plaintiff’s additional papers.

The instant action was commenced to recover damages for conscious pain and suffering and wrongful death, caused by the alleged malpractice of the defendants, including the defendant Johanson. The complaint alleged, inter alia, that the plaintiff’s decedent was continuously treated by the defendants, including the defendant Johanson, from July 19, 1984, up to and including, August 4, 1984, when the plaintiff’s decedent died. The summons in the instant action was filed with the Kings County Clerk, pursuant to CPLR 203 (b) (5), on July 2, 1986. Thereafter, the defendant Johanson was personally served, pursuant to CPLR 308 (1), on July 23, 1986. Under these circumstances, the plaintiff’s claims were interposed against the defendant Johanson on July 2, 1986, when the summons was filed with the County Clerk (see, CPLR 203 [b] [5]; Berkshire Life Ins. Co. v Fernandez, 71 NY2d 874). Accordingly, the Supreme Court properly granted that branch of the plaintiff’s motion which was to strike the affirmative defense of the Statute of Limitations interposed by the defendant Johanson in his answer.

However, that branch of the defendant Johanson’s cross motion which was to dismiss the complaint as against him based upon the plaintiff’s failure to comply with CPLR 3406 (a) should have been granted. In this medical malpractice action it was incumbent upon the plaintiff, pursuant to CPLR 3406 (a), to file a notice of medical malpractice action not [532] more than 60 days after issue was joined. The plaintiff failed to comply with this requirement. It is true that a plaintiff may move for an extension of time to file a notice of medical malpractice action after the 60-day period has expired, and that such a motion may be granted "upon good cause shown” (CPLR 2004; see also, 22 NYCRR 202.56 [a] [3]), i.e., upon the submission of papers demonstrating a reasonable excuse for the delay and a meritorious claim (Tewari v Tsoutsouras, 140 AD2d 104). The plaintiff herein requested such relief in one branch of her motion. The defendant Johanson, in his cross motion to dismiss the complaint, opposed the granting of such relief, and correctly argued that the papers submitted by the plaintiff in support of that branch of her motion which was for leave to file a late notice of medical malpractice action did not satisfy the standard set forth in Tewari v Tsoutsouras (supra). The other defendants did not, in their cross motion to dismiss, oppose this branch of the plaintiff’s motion, and thus waived any objection thereto.

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Kirschbaum v. Brookdale Hospital & Medical Center, 147 A.D.2d 530, 537 N.Y.S.2d 832, 1989 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 1623 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1989).

147 A.D.2d 530 (Kirschbaum v. Brookdale Hospital & Medical Center) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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