Williams v. Yang Qi Nail Salon, Inc.

• Court: New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division
• Writing for the Court: REINALDO E. RIVERA
• Citation: Williams v. Yang Qi Nail Salon, Inc., 2014 NY Slip Op 501, 113 A.D.3d 843, 979 N.Y.S.2d 625 (N.Y. App. Div. 2014)
• Decision Date: 29 January 2014
• Parties: Seeta WILLIAMS, appellant, v. YANG QI NAIL SALON, INC., et al., respondents.

113 A.D.3d 843

979 N.Y.S.2d 625

2014 N.Y. Slip Op. 00501

Seeta WILLIAMS, appellant,

v.YANG QI NAIL SALON, INC., et al., respondents.

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Second Department, New York.

Jan. 29, 2014.

Sanders, Sanders, Block, Woycik, Viener & Grossman, P.C., Mineola, N.Y. (Edward J. Nitkewicz of counsel), for appellant.

Tromello, McDonnell & Kehoe, Melville, N.Y. (Stephen J. Donnelly of counsel), for respondents Yang Qi Nail Salon, Inc., and Dabing Yang.

Andrea G. Sawyers, Melville, N.Y., for respondent Middle Country Road Realty, LLC.

REINALDO E. RIVERA, J.P., THOMAS A. DICKERSON, JOHN M. LEVENTHAL, and L. PRISCILLA HALL, JJ.

In an action to recover damages for personal injuries, the plaintiff appeals from an order of the Supreme Court, Queens County (McDonald, J.), dated May 3, 2012, which granted that branch of the motion of the defendants Yang Qi Nail Salon, Inc., and Dabing Yang which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against them, and granted that branch of the separate motion of the defendant Middle Country Road Realty, LLC, which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it.

ORDERED that the order is modified, on the law, by deleting the provision thereof granting that branch of the motion of the defendant Middle Country Road Realty, LLC, which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against it, and substituting therefor a provision denying that branch of the motion; as so modified, the order is affirmed, with one bill of costs to the defendants Yang Qi Nail Salon, Inc. and Dabing Yang payable by the plaintiff, and one bill of costs to the plaintiff payable by the defendant Middle Country Road Realty, LLC.

The plaintiff allegedly was injured when a wet ceiling tile fell from the drop ceiling inside the defendant Yang Qi Nail Salon, Inc. (hereinafter the salon). The salon, operated by its principal, the defendant Dabing Yang, was located on premises owned by the defendant Middle Country Road Realty, LLC (hereinafter Middle Country). Neither Yang, who was in the salon on a daily basis over the preceding several months and who was present on the date of the accident, nor the plaintiff, who had come to the salon twice a month for one or two years prior to the accident, noticed any dripping water, discoloration, wetness, or other abnormality in the interior ceiling tile prior to the accident. After the tile fell, Yang climbed a ladder and noticed two very small holes in the metal decking of the roof, which was two to three feet above the ceiling tiles.

Yang and the salon (hereinafter together the Yang defendants) moved, and Middle Country separately moved, inter alia, for summary judgment dismissing the complaint insofar as asserted against each of them on the ground that they had no notice of the allegedly defective condition. In opposition, the plaintiff asserted that the doctrine of res ipsa loquitur applied to Middle Country, but did not contest the issue of notice as to the Yang defendants or Middle Country. The Supreme Court granted those branches of the respective motions, determining, among other things, that the defendants established, prima facie,that they had no notice and that the plaintiff failed to raise a triable issue of fact in opposition.

Liability can be imposed upon a landowner or a...