Yongxi Li v. Pei Xing Huang
Attorneys and Parties
Brief Summary
Residential premises liability—slip-and-fall on ice; landlord control versus out-of-possession landlord status and notice of a recurrent dangerous condition.
Granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint.
The order granting summary judgment to the defendant and dismissing the complaint.
The defendant failed to establish prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law because evidence created triable issues of fact as to retained control over the accident area and actual knowledge of a recurrent dangerous condition (a depressed walkway causing ponding and freezing), warranting denial of summary judgment regardless of the plaintiff’s opposition.
Background
The plaintiff, a tenant in a two-unit house owned and occupied by the defendant, allegedly slipped and fell on January 30, 2019, on an icy outdoor walkway adjacent to his private entrance. He claimed a depressed area of the side-yard walkway allowed water to pond and freeze, creating recurrent ice. The lease assigned snow removal at the entryway to the plaintiff but required the defendant to provide a shovel and salt. The defendant lived on the property, maintained garbage cans for both units that were kept a few feet from the accident area, and accessed them several times per week. The plaintiff testified he notified the defendant four to five times before the accident about the defective area and winter ice accumulation; the plaintiff’s son testified the defendant had salted that area in December 2018. Photographs showed ice and snow accumulation at the location.
Lower Court Decision
After discovery, the Supreme Court, Queens County, granted the defendant’s motion for summary judgment dismissing the complaint.
Appellate Division Reversal
Reversed. The Appellate Division held the defendant did not eliminate triable issues of fact regarding whether he retained control over the accident area—given his residence at the property, regular use and maintenance of garbage cans near the site, and the lease obligation to provide shovel and salt—and whether he had actual knowledge of a recurrent dangerous condition, supported by the plaintiff’s prior complaints and photographs showing ice in the alleged depressed area. Under Winegrad v New York Univ. Med. Ctr., the failure to establish prima facie entitlement required denial of the motion regardless of the sufficiency of the opposition.
Legal Significance
In an owner-occupied two-family setting, a landlord may not be deemed out-of-possession as a matter of law where evidence shows ongoing use and control of the accident area and involvement in winter maintenance. Prior complaints and photographic evidence of ice at a defective walkway can establish triable issues as to actual knowledge of a recurrent dangerous condition, precluding summary judgment in slip-and-fall cases.
A lease assigning snow removal to a tenant does not automatically absolve a landlord of duty; regular use of the area, providing snow-removal supplies, prior salting, and notice of a recurring icy condition can show retained control and knowledge, defeating summary judgment.