Perri and Williamson Score Summary Judgment Win in Building Flood Case
Carl Perri and Ian Williamson recently obtained dismissal of a negligence claim in a subrogation action against our client in Supreme Court, Kings County. The action arose out of a May 26, 2010 flood which occurred at a building in Brooklyn, New York during a fire pump test conducted by a co-defendant. During the fire pump test, a standpipe at the building burst, causing a flood and damage to the building. Our client was retained to perform monthly inspections of the sprinkler system in the compactor room at the premises. As part of the proceeding, through documentary evidence and testimony of our client, we were able to establish that (1) our client did not perform any services with regard to the standpipe system in the building, (2) our client did not perform any inspection services at the building prior to the subject incident, (3) the contract with the owner/management company of the building only involved the sprinkler system in the compactor room of the building, and (4) our client did not perform an inspection of the sprinkler system in the compactor room of the building until after June 3, 2010. The Court ultimately held that our client satisfied its burden in making a prima facie showing of its entitlement to summary judgment by submitting documentary evidence demonstrating that it did not owe a duty to inspect the entire fire standpipe system in the building and on the contrary, the contract demonstrated that our client’s inspection services were limited to the compactor room of the building, and the Plaintiff failed to raise a triable issue of fact.
Carl M. Perri
Ian T. Williamson