Sanchez Wins Summary Judgment for Contractor in Cyclist-Pedestrian Collision Case

Clausen Miller partner Yesy Sanchez recently obtained summary judgment for an insured contractor in Kings County Supreme Court.  This was a bodily injury claim resulting from a cyclist coming into contact with a pedestrian plaintiff, on a public walkway/bikeway located in Brooklyn, NY (“path”).  

Two years prior to accident, the insured performed clean up and restorative work on the path. The work was performed and inspected by the City, at least 1 year prior to the accident. Plaintiff was walking on the path when a cyclist traveling in the opposite direction came into contact with him. Plaintiff sued the City of New York, Department of Parks and Recreation, Citytri Racing Inc., and the insured (St. John Enterprises, Inc.).

On the date of the accident, Citytri hosted a duathlon event that involved cycling. Plaintiff claimed a dangerous condition in that there were no signs to direct the pedestrians and the cyclists. In other words, there should have been a designated bike lane for the cyclist, to avoid collisions with pedestrians. Plaintiff claimed that the insured failed to restore the path to its original condition, which included painted lines separating the walkway from the bikeway.

We contended that Plaintiff’s accident was the result of a cyclist coming into contact with Plaintiff, and not a lack of painted lines. To the extent that the cyclist was a participant in codefendant’s event, the insured did not organize, supervise, or monitor the event. As it pertains to Plaintiff’s claim that the insured was required to paint the lines on the path, the written contract with the City did not expressly direct the insured to do so. Moreover, the City inspected the path several times and subsequently provided a certificate of completion to the insured.

Further, even if the insured failed to paint the lines, Plaintiff failed to show how this was the proximate cause of his accident. Plaintiff testified that moments before the accident he observed the cyclist swerve around other cyclists. Plaintiff also testified that the cyclist was traveling at a high rate of speed.