McDermott v. Coffee Beanery, Ltd.

9 A.D.3d 195, 777 N.Y.S.2d 103, 2004 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 7102
CourtAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
DecidedMay 20, 2004
StatusPublished
Cited by110 cases

This text of 9 A.D.3d 195 (McDermott v. Coffee Beanery, Ltd.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
McDermott v. Coffee Beanery, Ltd., 9 A.D.3d 195, 777 N.Y.S.2d 103, 2004 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 7102 (N.Y. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinions

OPINION OF THE COURT

Nardelli, J.P.

In this appeal, we are asked to determine, inter alia, whether the trial court erred when it granted plaintiffs’ posttrial motion to set aside the jury verdict in favor of defendant Love and Quiches Desserts, as against the weight of the evidence, and remanded the matter for a new trial on the issue of proximate cause and damages.

Overview

Plaintiff Siobhan McDermott1 commenced this personal injury action in February 2000 against defendant Coffee Beanery, Ltd. (Coffee Beanery), and thereafter served a supplemental summons and amended complaint, in November 2001, naming defendant Love and Quiches Desserts (Love and Quiches) as a direct defendant. Plaintiff alleged that on February 15, 1999, she purchased a brownie at the Coffee Beanery store located in the East End Terminal of LaGuardia Airport in Queens County, New York. Plaintiff asserted that the brownie, which was baked and distributed by Love and Quiches, contained the tip of a metal blade, which measured approximately one inch in length, [197]*197and that when she bit into the brownie, she sustained injury to a tooth, which precipitated a cascade of other personal maladies. Plaintiff settled her claims against the Coffee Beanery prior to trial.

Plaintiffs’ Case

The matter proceeded to trial in May 2003, at which time plaintiff, a 37-year-old fund-raising consultant for nonprofit organizations, testified that on February 15, 1999, she was at LaGuardia Airport awaiting a flight to Greenville, South Carolina, in order to see a client. Plaintiff averred that she entered the Coffee Beanery to purchase a snack for the trip and noticed certain food items, including the brownies, in a glass display. Plaintiff ordered a brownie and a biscotti, and a store employee took a precut piece of the brownies, which plaintiff described as approximately two inches by two inches, and placed it in a piece of wax paper and then in a paper bag.

Plaintiff testified that she then proceeded to the boarding gate, sat down to wait for her row to be called, opened the bag, broke off a piece of brownie, and put it in her mouth. Plaintiff asserted that when she bit down, she felt something sharp and immediately spit the brownie out into her hand. Plaintiff purportedly observed a small piece of brownie and a one-inch-long metal blade, which she placed back into the bag and then into her suitcase.

Plaintiff continued on her trip, spending “two to three days” in South Carolina, without seeking any medical treatment until her return to New York, when she saw her regular dentist, Dr. Steven Keeling, on February 22, 1999, one week after the initial occurrence. Plaintiff testified that she complained of sharp pain in her next to last molar on the bottom right side (tooth number 30), sensitivity to hot and cold in that tooth, and pain when she bit down to chew. Dr. Keeling, believing that perhaps a small piece of enamel may have chipped away, did not treat the tooth and indicated that the sensitivity might subside in a couple of days. Dr. Keeling, when the sensitivity did not abate, subsequently put an enamel coating on the tooth, but this also failed to alleviate the problem.

Plaintiff then underwent four unsuccessful root canal procedures, after which the tooth was removed by Dr. Josh Perry, an oral surgeon. Plaintiff, following the extraction, developed a “dry socket,” a condition in which blood does not coagulate over the wound, which led to several weeks of “unbe[198]*198lievably painful” treatment. Plaintiff eventually underwent surgery for a titanium implant in her jaw by another oral surgeon, Dr. Yale Kroll, and a tooth was installed by Dr. Keeling on that implant.

Plaintiff maintained that during the course of this dental treatment, which lasted several months, she developed an inflammation of her jaw and serious pain which began in the jaw and radiated over her face, head, neck and shoulder, which she claimed was temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ). Plaintiff sought treatment for this condition from a Dr. Donald Tannenbaum, who prepared a bite-plate to help plaintiff sleep, placed her on a course of physical therapy, and prescribed anti-inflammatory medication and muscle relaxants.

Plaintiff further testified that as a result of her ongoing medical treatment, she developed a gastrointestinal problem, consisting of severe intestinal pain, uncontrollable diarrhea and nausea. Plaintiff’s primary care physician, Dr. Mark Horowitz, advised her that she had a type of colitis known as c dif colitis, which was caused by the large amount of antibiotics she had been prescribed during the course of her various medical treatments, and referred her to a gastroenterologist, Dr. Simon Lichtiger. Dr. Lichtiger performed a number of tests, including endoscopies and colonoscopies, and treated her with anti-inflammatory medications, more antibiotics, and anticramping medications. A second gastroenterologist, Dr. Asher Kornbluth, prescribed an alternative series of medications and recommended plaintiff see a nutritionist. The colitis resolved itself after approximately six months.

Plaintiff, on cross-examination, acknowledged that: after she bit into the brownie, she experienced discomfort, but no pain; a filling had been put in the tooth many years earlier, but she had had no problem with that tooth for 15 years; she was not diagnosed with TMJ until approximately eight months after the incident; and the colitis condition was also not diagnosed until approximately eight months after the episode, although she denied one doctor told her she had irritable bowel syndrome, or that any of her doctors told her the condition was nerve-related.

Plaintiff averred that the colitis, the most extreme symptoms of which had subsided by the summer of 2000, caused her to have problems sitting for long periods of time, to jump off buses in order to use a bathroom due to severe diarrhea, and to have difficulty eating and socializing. Plaintiff, however, admitted that she did a lot of traveling for both business and pleasure, [199]*199and that she and her husband rented a house in Montauk for the summers of 1999 and 2000, flew to St. Thomas in May 2000, and Ireland in July 2000. Plaintiff further conceded that in 2001, while still suffering from TMJ, she went on a scuba-diving trip to Thailand, visited Cambodia, and flew to London and Paris.

Mr. Stephen Roman, an “area director” for the Coffee Beanery at the time in question, testified that: the store in which plaintiff purchased the brownie was under his supervision; all baked goods, including brownies, were purchased precut or presliced, from outside vendors; the only items the Coffee Beanery cut or sliced on premises were bagels, for which a serrated knife was used; and in February 1999, the Coffee Beanery purchased all of its brownies from Love and Quiches, which delivered them in 24 precut, preportioned pieces per tray. Mr. Roman stated that when products were delivered, they were not inspected other than to check the quantity against the invoice and, if the inventory in the Coffee Beanery became too substantial, the brownies would be frozen until needed, but never separated with a knife when thawed. Mr. Roman also examined the brownie with the blade purchased by plaintiff, and noted that it looked like the end of a mixing beater blade, which the Coffee Beanery did not have, and not like the serrated knives used by the store.

Mr.

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Bluebook (online)
9 A.D.3d 195, 777 N.Y.S.2d 103, 2004 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 7102, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mcdermott-v-coffee-beanery-ltd-nyappdiv-2004.