Recent Blog Posts
Demolish With Care
In March of this year, a construction worker died and two others were injured in a building collapse in downtown New York City. The building, a century-old, two-storey warehouse in a West Harlem neighborhood in Manhattan, was being demolished as part of a planned expansion project for Columbia University. Obviously, although the building was… Read More »
Deaths, Injuries Result from Construction Accident while “Jumping the Crane”
No, it’s not the latest extreme sport, although it does have a high element of danger and requires plenty of safety gear and equipment. “Jumping the crane” refers to adding sections to a crane to make it taller. If not done correctly, a section of the crane can come loose and fall from a… Read More »
Spate of Bus Crashes Around the Globe Kill Many and Injure Many More
Gospic, Croatia, June 23 – Perhaps the bus driver fell asleep in the early morning hours last Sunday, as eyewitnesses noticed the bus “swaying” moments before it crashed through metal barriers dividing the highway and overturned in the opposite lane. The bus was carrying a group of Czech tourists, of whom at least eight… Read More »
School May Be Liable for Student Blinded in Beating
A New York City eighth-grader who was blinded in his right eye after being beaten up by other students is suing the school system for $15 or $16 million for negligent supervision. On the morning of June 5th, 14-year old Kardin Ulysse was on his way to classes at Roy H. Mann Junior High… Read More »
Tractor-Trailer, Minivan, Both Damage Guardrail in New York Thruway Accident
On June 25th, a tractor-trailer and a minivan both struck the center guardrail on the New York Thruway near the town of Marcy between Utica and Rome in upstate New York, backing up traffic. While it appears the vehicles were not heavily damaged, the story continues to develop, and the most recent reports indicate… Read More »
NTSB Cites Speeding, Driver Fatigue in Fatal New York City Bus Crash
More than a year has passed since a New York City bus crash killed 15 people and injured 17 others last March, but the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has completed its investigation and finally released its report on the incident. According to the NTSB, speeding up to 78 miles per hour and driver… Read More »
Construction Worker Killed in Trench Wall Collapse
A construction worker at a Staten Island construction site in New York City died in June when the wall of a trench collapsed, causing severe head trauma and burying the worker under the collapsed wall. The Department of Buildings has issued a stop-work order for the site, and the contractor is expected to be… Read More »
Even the Most Simple-Looking Laws can be Complex
Sidewalks are notorious places for a New York slip and fall or trip and fall injury. They may be cracked, broken, uneven, icy or slippery from rainfall or from being hosed off. Who is responsible for maintaining sidewalks in good repair – the City or the property owner? More importantly, who is liable when… Read More »
Will the Supreme Court Open the Door to Retaliatory Arrests?
In a case argued before the United States Supreme Court on March 21st, the court may open the door allowing the police to arrest people in retaliation for exercising their First Amendments rights, so long as the police can show they had some other probable cause to make the arrest. The case heard by… Read More »
Civil Rights Under Bivens and Private Prisons
A federal statute, 42 U.S.C. 1983, provides the basis for civil lawsuits against state or local government officials who violate a person’s civil rights while acting under color of law. But what about federal government officials? Section 1983 does not apply to them, and there is no other comparable statute that would make liable… Read More »
